WSFS Financial Co. (NASDAQ:WSFS) Short Interest Update

WSFS Financial Co. (NASDAQ:WSFS) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,840,000 shares, a growth of 42.6% from the February 28th total of 1,290,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 302,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 6.1 days. Currently, 3.2% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Insider Transactions at WSFS Financial

In related news, CEO Rodger Levenson sold 7,199 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.20, for a total value of $397,384.80. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 142,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,881,456. This trade represents a 4.80 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in WSFS Financial in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $776,000. Citigroup Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of WSFS Financial by 17.8% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 105,232 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $5,366,000 after acquiring an additional 15,881 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its position in WSFS Financial by 5.9% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,283 shares of the bank’s stock worth $218,000 after acquiring an additional 239 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its position in WSFS Financial by 95.1% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 23,926 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,220,000 after acquiring an additional 11,660 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Glenmede Trust Co. NA increased its stake in WSFS Financial by 21.0% during the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 9,285 shares of the bank’s stock worth $473,000 after acquiring an additional 1,612 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.49% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on WSFS shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on WSFS Financial from $64.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $68.00 target price on shares of WSFS Financial in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $64.75.

WSFS Financial Price Performance

Shares of WSFS Financial stock opened at $51.87 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. WSFS Financial has a 52 week low of $41.33 and a 52 week high of $62.75. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $54.13 and its 200-day simple moving average is $53.96. The company has a market capitalization of $3.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.74 and a beta of 1.06.

WSFS Financial (NASDAQ:WSFS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The bank reported $1.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.13. WSFS Financial had a net margin of 18.77% and a return on equity of 10.30%. As a group, analysts expect that WSFS Financial will post 4.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WSFS Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.16%. WSFS Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.57%.

WSFS Financial Company Profile

WSFS Financial Corporation operates as the savings and loan holding company for the Wilmington Savings Fund Society, FSB that provides various banking services in the United States. It operates through three segments: WSFS Bank, Cash Connect, and Wealth Management. It offers various deposit products, including savings accounts, demand deposits, interest-bearing demand deposits, money market deposit accounts, and certificates of deposit, as well as accepts jumbo certificates of deposit from individuals, businesses, and municipalities.