Choreo LLC Invests $637,000 in Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL)

Choreo LLC acquired a new position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 10,179 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $637,000.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of WAL. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 4th quarter worth $67,758,000. Cincinnati Insurance Co. bought a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 1st quarter worth $46,538,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 16.3% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,112,376 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $328,165,000 after acquiring an additional 717,242 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 3.9% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,440,410 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $670,170,000 after purchasing an additional 395,101 shares in the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 176.2% in the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 594,469 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,110,000 after purchasing an additional 379,245 shares in the last quarter. 79.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Western Alliance Bancorporation

In other news, insider Stephen Russell Curley sold 5,070 shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.43, for a total value of $387,500.10. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 36,718 shares in the company, valued at $2,806,356.74. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, insider Stephen Russell Curley sold 5,070 shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.43, for a total value of $387,500.10. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 36,718 shares in the company, valued at $2,806,356.74. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Robert P. Latta sold 2,996 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.75, for a total value of $247,919.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 4,056 shares in the company, valued at $335,634. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 21,265 shares of company stock worth $1,700,391. Company insiders own 2.75% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on WAL shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $62.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Barclays increased their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $86.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Bank of America increased their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $82.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $70.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $68.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Western Alliance Bancorporation presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $84.27.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Trading Up 4.3 %

Western Alliance Bancorporation stock opened at $81.91 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The company has a market capitalization of $9.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.94, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.44. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a one year low of $38.81 and a one year high of $85.96. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $76.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $66.03.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.71 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $771.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $737.97 million. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a net margin of 15.54% and a return on equity of 13.98%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 15.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.96 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 7.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were paid a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.81%. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s payout ratio is presently 21.57%.

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.