Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) Position Decreased by Swiss National Bank

Swiss National Bank reduced its holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) by 0.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 204,300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,700 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank owned 0.19% of Western Alliance Bancorporation worth $17,670,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. RiverPark Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation during the third quarter valued at about $155,000. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $5,099,000. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. lifted its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 10.4% in the 3rd quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 1,802,505 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $155,899,000 after acquiring an additional 169,244 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 15.1% during the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 335,496 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,018,000 after purchasing an additional 44,106 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc purchased a new position in Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $278,000. 79.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WAL opened at $91.55 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $86.57 and its 200-day simple moving average is $75.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.85. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 52 week low of $47.60 and a 52 week high of $96.45. The firm has a market cap of $10.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.44.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.80 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.90 by ($0.10). Western Alliance Bancorporation had a net margin of 14.66% and a return on equity of 13.16%. The company had revenue of $833.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $811.40 million. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.66%. This is a boost from Western Alliance Bancorporation’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio is 23.46%.

Insider Transactions at Western Alliance Bancorporation

In related news, Director Robert P. Latta sold 2,996 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.75, for a total transaction of $247,919.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 4,056 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $335,634. The trade was a 42.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Barbara Kennedy sold 11,083 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.59, for a total transaction of $904,261.97. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $650,843.43. This trade represents a 58.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.75% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on WAL shares. Wedbush raised their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. StockNews.com downgraded Western Alliance Bancorporation from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $100.00 to $95.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 21st. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $102.00 target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada set a $99.00 price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $92.73.

About Western Alliance Bancorporation

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.