Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen analysts that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and twelve have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $75.29.

A number of research firms recently issued reports on WAL. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $79.00 to $74.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $70.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Hovde Group assumed coverage on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a report on Monday, April 22nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $75.00 price target for the company. Truist Financial reduced their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $75.00 to $74.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Performance

NYSE:WAL opened at $67.00 on Friday. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 1 year low of $38.77 and a 1 year high of $70.23. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $61.96 and its 200 day simple moving average is $61.35. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $7.38 billion, a PE ratio of 9.77, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.46.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last posted its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The financial services provider reported $1.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.03. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a net margin of 16.50% and a return on equity of 14.77%. The business had revenue of $1.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $711.34 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.30 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 7.41 EPS for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, May 16th were issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 15th. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.57%.

Insider Activity at Western Alliance Bancorporation

In related news, CAO J. Kelly Jr. Ardrey sold 1,000 shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.20, for a total transaction of $64,200.00. Following the completion of 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 2.75% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Western Alliance Bancorporation

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WAL. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 57.4% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 502 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation in the 4th quarter valued at about $65,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 26.5% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,165 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 49.1% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,402 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $92,000 after acquiring an additional 462 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.15% of the company’s stock.

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.