UPDATE: D.A. Davidson Downgrades Heritage Financial from Buy to Neutral

D.A. Davidson downgraded Heritage Financial Corporation

from a Buy to a Neutral rating and lowered its price target from $17 to $16. D.A. Davidson commented, “Heritage reported Q2'12 EPS of $0.21 versus our $0.19 estimate and the consensus of $0.20. FDIC deal-related accounting boosted EPS modestly, therefore, in our view results were essentially in line. Positives in the quarter included decent loan growth and incrementally improved credit quality, while operating costs were a bit high versus our expectations, and core NIM fell.” Heritage Financial Corporation closed at $14.89 on Wednesday.