Heritage Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:HFWA) Shares Will Pay Quarterly Dividend of $0.25

Heritage Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:HFWA) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, October 21st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share by the financial services provider on Wednesday, November 18th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 4th.

Heritage Financial has a payout ratio of 44.2% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Heritage Financial to earn $2.63 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.00 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 38.0%.

Heritage Financial Trading Up 3.0%

Shares of HFWA stock traded up $0.84 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $28.52. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 475,288 shares, compared to its average volume of 327,802. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.17 billion, a PE ratio of 13.58 and a beta of 0.50. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $28.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $28.33. Heritage Financial has a 12-month low of $21.32 and a 12-month high of $31.25.

Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.05. Heritage Financial had a net margin of 20.44% and a return on equity of 8.78%. On average, research analysts predict that Heritage Financial will post 2.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Heritage Financial news, EVP Matthew T. Ray sold 3,692 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.10, for a total value of $111,129.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 22,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $684,323.50. This trade represents a 13.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Jeffrey S. Lyon sold 10,000 shares of Heritage Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.00, for a total value of $300,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 40,719 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,221,570. The trade was a 19.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 22,004 shares of company stock worth $657,200. Corporate insiders own 1.49% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Heritage Financial

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Apella Capital LLC bought a new stake in Heritage Financial in the third quarter valued at $285,000. Tidal Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Heritage Financial during the second quarter worth about $419,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new position in shares of Heritage Financial during the second quarter worth about $68,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Heritage Financial in the 2nd quarter worth about $214,000. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of Heritage Financial by 21.7% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 11,349 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $336,000 after acquiring an additional 2,022 shares during the period. 78.30% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Heritage Financial

Heritage Financial Corporation (NASDAQ: HFWA) is a bank holding company headquartered in Olympia, Washington. The company operates primarily through Heritage Bank, a community-focused financial institution serving businesses, individuals and organizations in Washington and Oregon.

Heritage Bank provides commercial and residential real estate lending, business and consumer loans, deposit accounts, cash-management and treasury services, online and mobile banking, and other traditional banking products.