What is Zacks Research’s Forecast for WaFd FY2026 Earnings?

WaFd, Inc (NASDAQ:WAFD) – Investment analysts at Zacks Research lifted their FY2026 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of WaFd in a report released on Thursday, January 16th. Zacks Research analyst S. Shah now forecasts that the bank will earn $3.25 per share for the year, up from their previous forecast of $3.23. The consensus estimate for WaFd’s current full-year earnings is $2.82 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for WaFd’s Q4 2026 earnings at $0.84 EPS.

WaFd (NASDAQ:WAFD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The bank reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.01. WaFd had a return on equity of 9.44% and a net margin of 13.97%. The business had revenue of $389.98 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $190.43 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.72 earnings per share.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $40.00 target price on shares of WaFd in a research note on Monday, October 21st. DA Davidson raised their price objective on shares of WaFd from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $38.00 target price on shares of WaFd in a research report on Friday. StockNews.com raised WaFd from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their price target on WaFd from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, WaFd has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $38.50.

WaFd Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WAFD opened at $30.25 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The firm has a market cap of $2.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.20 and a beta of 0.87. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $34.38 and its 200 day moving average price is $34.42. WaFd has a 1-year low of $25.78 and a 1-year high of $38.62.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On WaFd

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its position in shares of WaFd by 24.1% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 139,530 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,988,000 after purchasing an additional 27,100 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in WaFd by 7.4% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,225,248 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $42,700,000 after buying an additional 84,155 shares in the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. grew its holdings in WaFd by 11.9% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 186,174 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,488,000 after buying an additional 19,751 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its position in WaFd by 33.3% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 161,958 shares of the bank’s stock worth $5,643,000 after buying an additional 40,499 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of WaFd by 6.7% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 26,463 shares of the bank’s stock worth $954,000 after acquiring an additional 1,669 shares during the last quarter. 83.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Ryan Mauer sold 12,132 shares of WaFd stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.33, for a total transaction of $404,359.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 100,376 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,345,532.08. The trade was a 10.78 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.46% of the company’s stock.

WaFd Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 22nd were given a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.44%. WaFd’s payout ratio is 47.93%.

About WaFd

WaFd, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Washington Federal Bank that provides lending, depository, insurance, and other banking services in the United States. The company offers deposit products, including business and personal checking accounts, and term certificates of deposit, as well as money market accounts and passbook savings accounts.