StockNews.com Upgrades First Financial Northwest (NASDAQ:FFNW) to Hold

First Financial Northwest (NASDAQ:FFNW) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Friday.

Separately, Piper Sandler downgraded First Financial Northwest from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $23.50 target price on the stock. in a research note on Friday, July 26th.

First Financial Northwest Stock Up 1.7 %

FFNW stock opened at $23.00 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $211.00 million, a PE ratio of 69.70 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10. First Financial Northwest has a twelve month low of $10.09 and a twelve month high of $23.18. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $22.31 and its 200-day moving average is $21.46.

First Financial Northwest (NASDAQ:FFNW) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The bank reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.04 by $0.13. First Financial Northwest had a net margin of 3.89% and a return on equity of 1.98%. The firm had revenue of $19.99 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.60 million. Sell-side analysts expect that First Financial Northwest will post 0.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its stake in shares of First Financial Northwest by 9.8% during the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 11,986 shares of the bank’s stock worth $253,000 after purchasing an additional 1,069 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of First Financial Northwest by 6.2% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 368,446 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $7,575,000 after buying an additional 21,447 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of First Financial Northwest by 45.2% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 63,223 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,336,000 after buying an additional 19,670 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers bought a new position in shares of First Financial Northwest during the 2nd quarter worth $188,000. Finally, Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in First Financial Northwest in the 2nd quarter worth about $411,000. 55.00% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About First Financial Northwest

First Financial Northwest, Inc operates as the bank holding company for First Financial Northwest Bank that provides commercial banking services in Washington. The company offers a range of deposit products, including noninterest-bearing accounts, interest-bearing demand accounts, money market accounts, savings accounts, and certificates of deposit.