Aigen Investment Management LP Acquires New Position in Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL)

Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new position in Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor bought 7,553 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $497,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of WAL. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 5.8% during the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 8,880 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $408,000 after acquiring an additional 487 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 49.9% in the third quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 15,618 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $718,000 after purchasing an additional 5,201 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 5.5% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 8,492 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $390,000 after buying an additional 443 shares during the last quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 28.9% during the third quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 206,677 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,501,000 after buying an additional 46,284 shares during the period. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC bought a new position in Western Alliance Bancorporation in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $234,000. 79.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE WAL opened at $62.66 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.90 billion, a PE ratio of 9.11, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.47. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a one year low of $33.19 and a one year high of $70.23. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $60.76 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $59.41.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 19th. The financial services provider reported $1.72 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $711.34 million. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a net margin of 16.50% and a return on equity of 14.77%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.30 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 7.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 16th will be paid a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.36%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 15th. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on WAL shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $82.00 target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a report on Friday, April 19th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $76.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $70.00 price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $72.47.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Western Alliance Bancorporation news, CAO J. Kelly Jr. Ardrey sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.20, for a total value of $64,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,636 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $361,831.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 2.75% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Profile

Western Alliance Bancorporation operates as the bank holding company for Western Alliance Bank that provides various banking products and related services primarily in Arizona, California, and Nevada. It operates through Commercial and Consumer Related segments. The company offers deposit products, including checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as fixed-rate and fixed maturity certificates of deposit accounts; demand deposits; and treasury management and residential mortgage products and services.