Regal Partners Ltd Grows Position in Woodward, Inc. $WWD

Regal Partners Ltd raised its stake in shares of Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) by 62.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 3,249 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,249 shares during the period. Regal Partners Ltd’s holdings in Woodward were worth $1,163,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WWD. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Woodward by 3.1% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,116 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $399,000 after buying an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. increased its holdings in Woodward by 5.4% in the 1st quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 758 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $271,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its stake in Woodward by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 3,327 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $841,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the period. Quest Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Woodward by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Quest Investment Management LLC now owns 4,313 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,090,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC lifted its holdings in Woodward by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC now owns 13,417 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $4,056,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.18% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Susquehanna assumed coverage on shares of Woodward in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. They issued a “positive” rating and a $423.00 price target for the company. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Woodward from $427.00 to $429.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $450.00 target price on shares of Woodward in a research note on Monday. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Woodward from $404.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of Woodward in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $440.00 target price for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $395.50.

Woodward Stock Down 2.2%

NASDAQ WWD opened at $410.55 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $394.83 and its 200 day moving average is $376.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Woodward, Inc. has a 12 month low of $233.31 and a 12 month high of $450.92. The stock has a market cap of $24.46 billion, a PE ratio of 49.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.86.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The technology company reported $2.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.10 by $0.17. Woodward had a return on equity of 20.12% and a net margin of 12.85%.The business had revenue of $1.09 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.69 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Woodward, Inc. will post 9.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Woodward Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Woodward’s payout ratio is 15.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Woodward

In related news, Director Daniel G. Korte sold 14,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.05, for a total transaction of $5,233,935.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 4,434 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,578,725.70. This represents a 76.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Karrie M. Bem sold 280 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $372.66, for a total transaction of $104,344.80. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 4,297 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,601,320.02. The trade was a 6.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 15,629 shares of company stock worth $5,570,005 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.71% of the company’s stock.

Woodward Company Profile

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.