Waterstone Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBF) Director Patrick S. Lawton Sells 37,500 Shares of Stock

Waterstone Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBF) Director Patrick S. Lawton sold 37,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.03, for a total value of $526,125.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 49,131 shares in the company, valued at approximately $689,307.93. The trade was a 43.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Waterstone Financial Price Performance

Shares of Waterstone Financial stock opened at $14.02 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $13.58 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $14.42. Waterstone Financial, Inc. has a 12-month low of $10.60 and a 12-month high of $16.86. The firm has a market cap of $271.61 million, a PE ratio of 13.88 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64.

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

Waterstone Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 8th were issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 8th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.28%. Waterstone Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 59.41%.

Institutional Trading of Waterstone Financial

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WSBF. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. raised its holdings in Waterstone Financial by 165.0% in 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 in the last quarter. Fourthstone LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waterstone Financial during the fourth quarter valued at about $504,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in Waterstone Financial by 64.9% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 85,628 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $1,151,000 after buying an additional 33,715 shares in the last quarter. Foundry Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Waterstone Financial by 19.4% in the third quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 205,165 shares of the savings and loans company’s stock worth $3,016,000 after buying an additional 33,305 shares during the period. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Waterstone Financial during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $365,000. Institutional investors own 62.71% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com cut shares of Waterstone Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th.

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.