Waterstone Financial (NASDAQ:WSBF) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

Waterstone Financial (NASDAQ:WSBF) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued on Wednesday.

Waterstone Financial Price Performance

NASDAQ WSBF opened at $13.96 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $270.45 million, a PE ratio of 13.82 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a current ratio of 1.48. The business’s fifty day moving average is $13.59 and its 200 day moving average is $14.42. Waterstone Financial has a fifty-two week low of $10.60 and a fifty-two week high of $16.86.

Waterstone Financial (NASDAQ:WSBF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The savings and loans company reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter. Waterstone Financial had a return on equity of 5.75% and a net margin of 9.23%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Patrick S. Lawton sold 37,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.03, for a total transaction of $526,125.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 49,131 shares in the company, valued at approximately $689,307.93. This represents a 43.29 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Mark Raymond Gerke sold 2,738 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.14, for a total value of $38,715.32. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 30,334 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $428,922.76. This represents a 8.28 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 67,147 shares of company stock valued at $936,511. 8.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waterstone Financial

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. grew its position in Waterstone Financial by 165.0% during the 3rd quarter. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. now owns 90,826 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $1,335,000 after purchasing an additional 56,554 shares during the period. Fourthstone LLC acquired a new stake in Waterstone Financial during the 4th quarter worth about $504,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Waterstone Financial by 64.9% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 85,628 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $1,151,000 after purchasing an additional 33,715 shares during the period. Foundry Partners LLC grew its position in Waterstone Financial by 19.4% during the 3rd quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 205,165 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $3,016,000 after purchasing an additional 33,305 shares during the period. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Waterstone Financial during the 4th quarter worth about $365,000. 62.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Waterstone Financial

Waterstone Financial, Inc operates as a bank holding company for WaterStone Bank SSB that provides various financial services to customers in southeastern Wisconsin, the United States. It operates in two segments, Community Banking and Mortgage Banking. The Community Banking segment offers consumer and business banking products and services, such as deposit and transactional solutions, including checking accounts, online banking and bill pay services, money transfer services, as well as credit, debit, and pre-paid cards; investable funds solutions comprising savings, money market deposits, individual retirement accounts, and certificates of deposit; residential mortgages, home equity loans and lines of credit, personal and installment loans, real estate financing, business loans, and business lines of credit; and fixed and variable annuities, insurance products, and trust and investment management accounts.