Heritage Financial Co. (NASDAQ:HFWA) CEO Jeffrey J. Deuel Sells 7,033 Shares

Heritage Financial Co. (NASDAQ:HFWA) CEO Jeffrey J. Deuel sold 7,033 shares of Heritage Financial stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.66, for a total transaction of $166,400.78. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 70,906 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,677,635.96. This trade represents a 9.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Heritage Financial Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:HFWA opened at $23.61 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $802.53 million, a PE ratio of 19.04 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.84. The company’s fifty day moving average is $24.47 and its 200-day moving average is $24.01. Heritage Financial Co. has a 52 week low of $16.55 and a 52 week high of $27.58.

Heritage Financial (NASDAQ:HFWA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.06. Heritage Financial had a net margin of 13.64% and a return on equity of 7.17%. Equities research analysts predict that Heritage Financial Co. will post 2.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Heritage Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 6th were issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.07%. This is a boost from Heritage Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 6th. Heritage Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.42%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com raised Heritage Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Heritage Financial

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Heritage Financial by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 123,283 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,684,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Heritage Financial by 794.1% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,064 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 945 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in shares of Heritage Financial by 6.8% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 29,901 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $733,000 after buying an additional 1,914 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Heritage Financial by 10.2% during the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 20,710 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $507,000 after acquiring an additional 1,917 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Keybank National Association OH lifted its stake in shares of Heritage Financial by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 49,841 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,221,000 after acquiring an additional 2,477 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.30% of the company’s stock.

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.