Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) Lowered to “Buy” Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report report published on Saturday.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the company. TD Cowen raised their price target on Woodward from $350.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Woodward in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $440.00 price target on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Woodward in a research report on Monday, April 20th. UBS Group raised their price target on Woodward from $427.00 to $429.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Woodward from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Woodward presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $390.27.

Woodward Trading Down 0.2%

WWD stock opened at $369.93 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $375.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $333.66. Woodward has a fifty-two week low of $193.74 and a fifty-two week high of $407.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.19.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The technology company reported $2.27 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.10 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $1.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.01 billion. Woodward had a return on equity of 20.12% and a net margin of 12.85%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.69 EPS. Woodward has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.150-9.450 EPS. Analysts expect that Woodward will post 9.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Woodward Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Woodward’s payout ratio is currently 15.33%.

Insider Activity

In other Woodward news, CEO Charles P. Blankenship sold 5,000 shares of Woodward stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $367.40, for a total transaction of $1,837,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 65,854 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,194,759.60. The trade was a 7.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Shawn M. Mclevige sold 1,850 shares of Woodward stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $384.37, for a total value of $711,084.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 3,095 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,189,625.15. This represents a 37.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 19,475 shares of company stock worth $7,405,135. Corporate insiders own 0.71% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Woodward

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Woodward by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,116 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $399,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of Woodward by 5.4% in the 1st quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 758 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $271,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Woodward by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. now owns 1,553 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $392,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc raised its stake in shares of Woodward by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,036 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $267,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, Compound Planning Inc. raised its stake in shares of Woodward by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 1,596 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $403,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.18% of the company’s stock.

About Woodward

Woodward, Inc (NASDAQ: WWD) is a global leader in the design, manufacture and service of control systems and components for the aerospace and industrial markets. Founded in 1870 and headquartered in Fort Collins, Colorado, the company specializes in motion control, fuel systems, actuation, and digital control solutions. Its offerings enable precision management of flow, pressure and motion in critical applications ranging from aircraft engines and power turbines to hydraulic systems.

Woodward’s product portfolio is organized into two primary segments: Aerospace and Industrial.