Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA) Price Target Lowered to $34.00 at Piper Sandler

Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA) had its price objective trimmed by Piper Sandler from $35.00 to $34.00 in a research note released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen cut Heritage Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. Stephens lifted their target price on shares of Heritage Financial from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of Heritage Financial from $29.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Heritage Financial from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $31.00.

Heritage Financial Price Performance

HFWA opened at $26.10 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $1.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.32 and a beta of 0.49. Heritage Financial has a 1 year low of $19.84 and a 1 year high of $28.98. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $26.38 and a 200 day moving average price of $24.75.

Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.09. Heritage Financial had a return on equity of 8.61% and a net margin of 20.10%.The company had revenue of $66.35 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $65.95 million. Analysts forecast that Heritage Financial will post 2.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Heritage Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 28th were issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 28th. Heritage Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.98%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Tony Chalfant sold 4,668 shares of Heritage Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.65, for a total value of $129,070.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 19,870 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $549,405.50. This trade represents a 19.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kelli Ann Wilson sold 1,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.48, for a total transaction of $50,312.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 3,778 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $100,041.44. The trade was a 33.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 8,368 shares of company stock valued at $226,740 over the last 90 days. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Heritage Financial

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Heritage Financial in the third quarter valued at about $11,210,000. Algebris UK Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Heritage Financial during the 3rd quarter worth about $10,775,000. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. boosted its stake in Heritage Financial by 163.1% during the 4th quarter. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. now owns 607,105 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $14,358,000 after purchasing an additional 376,368 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Heritage Financial by 9.2% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,626,334 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $63,531,000 after purchasing an additional 220,273 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC grew its holdings in Heritage Financial by 437.3% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 107,482 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,615,000 after buying an additional 87,479 shares during the last quarter. 78.30% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Heritage Financial Company Profile

Heritage Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:HFWA) is a bank holding company headquartered in Spokane, Washington. Through its primary subsidiary, Heritage Bank, the company provides a comprehensive range of banking and financial services to both individual and commercial clients. Heritage Bank’s offerings encompass deposit products, lending solutions, treasury and cash management services, mortgage banking, and wealth management, positioning the organization as a full-service community bank.

The company’s lending portfolio includes commercial real estate loans, agricultural loans, small business administration (SBA) loans, construction and development financing, and a variety of consumer mortgage products.