Street View: WaFd's loan sale pricing relatively palatable

WaFd

20/05/2024 18:56

** Regional bank WaFd  WAFD.O  disclosed on Friday it had
agreed to sell 2,000 recently acquired commercial multi-family
real-estate loans to second-largest U.S. lender Bank of America
 BAC.N  for $2.9 bln
    
    PRICING PALATABLE 
    ** Stephens ("equal-weight," PT: $32) notes that WAFD's loan
sale pricing at nearly 92% of face value could be relatively
palatable
    ** Adds that the portfolio sale should be a strong signal to
the market of strength in underlying credit in certain pockets
of commercial real estate, specifically California multi-family
    ** KBW ("outperform," PT: $35) says the fact that WAFD got
the loan sale done around the carrying value of the assets is a
positive
    ** Adds that the loan sale provides WAFD with additional
balance sheet flexibility to pay down higher cost debt and
consider buybacks
    ** Piper Sandler ("neutral," PT: $31) says the loan sale
provides WAFD increased balance sheet flexibility to redeploy
proceeds into cash and loan production     

 (Reporting by Arasu Kannagi Basil in Bengaluru)
 ((ArasuKannagi.Basil@thomsonreuters.com;))