Insider Buying: West Bancorporation, Inc. (NASDAQ:WTBA) CEO Buys 639 Shares of Stock

West Bancorporation, Inc. (NASDAQ:WTBA) CEO David D. Nelson bought 639 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $22.27 per share, with a total value of $14,230.53. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 124,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,780,765.82. This represents a 0.51 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

West Bancorporation Stock Performance

Shares of WTBA stock opened at $22.61 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $21.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $21.12. The company has a market cap of $380.53 million, a P/E ratio of 15.81 and a beta of 0.97. West Bancorporation, Inc. has a 12 month low of $15.80 and a 12 month high of $24.85.

West Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WTBA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.02. West Bancorporation had a net margin of 12.12% and a return on equity of 10.56%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.27 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that West Bancorporation, Inc. will post 1.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 5th were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 5th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.42%. West Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio is presently 69.93%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on WTBA shares. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of West Bancorporation from $25.00 to $23.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of West Bancorporation from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On West Bancorporation

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. City State Bank boosted its stake in West Bancorporation by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. City State Bank now owns 8,354 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $181,000 after acquiring an additional 499 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of West Bancorporation by 11.3% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 6,658 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $144,000 after buying an additional 678 shares during the last quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC raised its holdings in West Bancorporation by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 28,176 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $594,000 after purchasing an additional 713 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in West Bancorporation by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 33,928 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $735,000 after purchasing an additional 805 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN raised its holdings in West Bancorporation by 20.4% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 12,157 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $263,000 after purchasing an additional 2,062 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 44.30% of the company’s stock.

About West Bancorporation

West Bancorporation, Inc operates as the financial holding company provides community banking and trust services to individuals and small- to medium-sized businesses in the United States. It offers deposit services, including checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as time certificates of deposit.