Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) has been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the fourteen research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $94.00.

Several brokerages have commented on WAL. DA Davidson dropped their target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $93.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Western Alliance Bancorporation from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $83.00 to $79.00 in a report on Monday, March 9th. Citigroup increased their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $94.00 to $92.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Ben Mucha sold 5,946 shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation stock in a transaction on Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.00, for a total transaction of $481,626.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 3,485 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $282,285. This trade represents a 63.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 2.68% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WAL. Clearstead Advisors LLC grew its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 144.6% in the fourth quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 411 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the period. Community Bank N.A. bought a new position in Western Alliance Bancorporation in the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Leonteq Securities AG acquired a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the fourth quarter worth $44,000. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation in the 4th quarter valued at $45,000. 79.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Trading Down 0.3%

Western Alliance Bancorporation stock traded down $0.21 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $82.29. 33,589 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,222,974. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.60, a PEG ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.86. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a fifty-two week low of $65.82 and a fifty-two week high of $97.23. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $79.97 and its 200-day moving average is $81.62.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.74. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a net margin of 17.03% and a return on equity of 13.58%. The business had revenue of $968.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $944.18 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.79 earnings per share. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s revenue was up 31.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 14th were paid a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 14th. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.56%.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Company Profile

Western Alliance Bancorporation is a bank holding company headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona. Through its principal subsidiary, Western Alliance Bank, the company provides a range of banking services to commercial clients, entrepreneurs and real estate developers. As one of the largest regional banks in the western United States, it focuses on relationship-driven banking solutions tailored to niche industries and growing businesses.

The company’s core offerings include deposit products, treasury management and a variety of lending services.