Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) Cut to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Friday.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Woodward from $158.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $160.00 target price (down from $186.00) on shares of Woodward in a report on Friday, October 4th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Woodward from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $170.00 to $190.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on Woodward from $228.00 to $201.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Truist Financial upgraded Woodward from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $152.00 to $187.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $174.67.

Woodward Stock Down 1.7 %

NASDAQ:WWD opened at $161.32 on Friday. Woodward has a twelve month low of $126.31 and a twelve month high of $188.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $165.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $169.28.

Woodward Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. Woodward’s dividend payout ratio is 16.72%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Woodward

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WWD. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Woodward by 743.5% in the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 223,639 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $34,452,000 after buying an additional 197,125 shares during the period. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Woodward during the 1st quarter valued at $3,962,000. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in shares of Woodward by 36.5% during the 1st quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 20,216 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $3,116,000 after acquiring an additional 5,407 shares during the period. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board bought a new position in shares of Woodward in the first quarter worth $1,301,000. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd increased its position in shares of Woodward by 16.9% in the first quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 26,042 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $4,011,000 after purchasing an additional 3,759 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.18% of the company’s stock.

Woodward Company Profile

Woodward, Inc designs, manufactures, and services control solutions for the aerospace and industrial markets worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Aerospace and Industrial. The Aerospace segment provides fuel pumps, metering units, actuators, air valves, specialty valves, fuel nozzles, and thrust reverser actuation systems for turbine engines and nacelles, and flight deck controls, actuators, servocontrols, motors, and sensors for aircraft.