Washington Federal (WAFD) 2021 Q2 Earnings Preview

The history of Washington Federal Inc. (NASDAQ:WAFD) dates back to 1917 when a group of local businessmen formed Ballard Savings and Loan Association in Ballard, Washington. The company gradually expanded its banking services in several new territories over the years. Today, it is a leading savings and loan institution offering lending, depository, and other banking services to both mid and large businesses.

Washington Federal recently announced its financial results for the second quarter. The company reported earnings of $44.9 million for the three months ended March 31, up from $36.3 million share in the comparable period of 2020. On a per-share basis, earnings rose to 56 cents per share, versus 47 cents per share in the year-ago quarter.

Commenting in the results, CEO Brent Beardall said in a statement, “One year ago, as we entered this global pandemic, WaFd Bank began planning for the worst and hoping for the best. Many were predicting significant loan losses as the economic hardships of the pandemic impacted both individuals and businesses. We are grateful to report that thus far not only did those losses not materialize, we actually experienced over $3 million of net recoveries. An argument could be made portions of our loan portfolio are stronger today than one year ago as real estate values in most of our markets have increased substantially – which translates into lower loan-to-values and therefore, lower risk.”

Loan originations in the quarter were $1.98 billion, up 60 percent from $1.24 billion in the same period of 2020. Meanwhile, total assets in the quarter reached $19.5 billion, as compared to $18.8 billion as of September 30.

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