Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) Price Target Increased to $77.00 by Analysts at Jefferies Financial Group

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) had its target price hoisted by Jefferies Financial Group from $70.00 to $77.00 in a research report released on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

WAL has been the subject of several other research reports. DA Davidson reduced their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $85.00 to $78.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 22nd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report on Saturday, June 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $79.00 to $74.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $91.00 to $86.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Western Alliance Bancorporation presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $75.21.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Performance

Western Alliance Bancorporation stock opened at $64.06 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $7.05 billion, a PE ratio of 9.34, a P/E/G ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $61.26 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $61.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.87. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 12 month low of $35.67 and a 12 month high of $70.23.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 19th. The financial services provider reported $1.72 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.18 billion during 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 quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.30 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 7.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 16th were given a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 15th. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.57%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Western Alliance Bancorporation

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WAL. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 120.6% in the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,959 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $182,000 after purchasing an additional 2,164 shares in the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 130,266 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,988,000 after purchasing an additional 6,957 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 552,131 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,381,000 after purchasing an additional 23,041 shares in the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 47,472 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,182,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 9.8% in the 3rd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 12,151 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $559,000 after purchasing an additional 1,089 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.