Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA) Given New $26.00 Price Target at Stephens

Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA) had its price target increased by Stephens from $24.00 to $26.00 in a research report released on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Heritage Financial from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Heritage Financial from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $25.00.

Heritage Financial Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ HFWA opened at $23.20 on Tuesday. Heritage Financial has a 12-month low of $16.32 and a 12-month high of $23.82. The firm has a market cap of $800.40 million, a PE ratio of 21.48 and a beta of 0.53. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $22.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $20.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.42 by ($0.09). Heritage Financial had a net margin of 12.27% and a return on equity of 7.01%. The company had revenue of $81.65 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $58.17 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.51 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Heritage Financial will post 1.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Heritage Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 6th will be given a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 6th. Heritage Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.19%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Heritage Financial

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Heritage Financial by 133.7% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,374 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 786 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Heritage Financial in the second quarter worth about $25,000. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Heritage Financial in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in Heritage Financial during the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Heritage Financial during the second quarter worth approximately $31,000. 78.30% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Heritage Financial Company Profile

Heritage Financial Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Heritage Bank that provides various financial services to small and medium sized businesses and individuals in the United States. It accepts various deposit products, such as noninterest demand deposits, interest bearing demand deposits, money market accounts, savings accounts, personal checking accounts, and certificates of deposit.