Zacks Research Upgrades First Western Financial (NASDAQ:MYFW) to “Strong-Buy”

First Western Financial (NASDAQ:MYFW) was upgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of First Western Financial in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen raised First Western Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, November 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, First Western Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $24.33.

First Western Financial Price Performance

NASDAQ MYFW opened at $26.38 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $256.15 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.45 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.04. First Western Financial has a 52-week low of $17.52 and a 52-week high of $28.00. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $25.21 and a 200 day simple moving average of $23.67.

First Western Financial (NASDAQ:MYFW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.38 by ($0.06). First Western Financial had a return on equity of 4.91% and a net margin of 6.91%.The business had revenue of $26.27 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.61 million. Analysts anticipate that First Western Financial will post 1.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at First Western Financial

In related news, CEO Scott C. Wylie sold 16,171 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.72, for a total value of $415,918.12. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 756,482 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,456,717.04. This represents a 2.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 17.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of First Western Financial

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MYFW. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new position in First Western Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at about $755,000. Sippican Capital Advisors raised its stake in First Western Financial by 12.6% during the 2nd quarter. Sippican Capital Advisors now owns 45,100 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,017,000 after buying an additional 5,030 shares during the last quarter. Persistent Asset Partners Ltd raised its stake in First Western Financial by 34.6% during the 2nd quarter. Persistent Asset Partners Ltd now owns 23,406 shares of the company’s stock valued at $528,000 after buying an additional 6,022 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP bought a new position in shares of First Western Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at $897,000. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of First Western Financial by 122.7% in the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 40,626 shares of the company’s stock worth $796,000 after buying an additional 22,382 shares during the last quarter. 60.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Western Financial Company Profile

First Western Financial, Inc (NASDAQ: MYFW) is a Denver-based bank holding company that, through its principal subsidiary First Western Trust, delivers a suite of personalized financial services. The company’s core activities center on wealth management and trust administration for high-net-worth individuals, families and institutions. In addition, First Western Financial offers a comprehensive range of deposit products—such as checking accounts, savings accounts, money market funds and certificates of deposit—designed to meet the liquidity and income needs of its clients.

Complementing its deposit offerings, First Western Financial provides fiduciary and investment management services, including estate planning, charitable giving strategies and multi-generational wealth transfer.