Victory Capital Management Inc. Buys 12,702 Shares of Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC)

Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) by 58.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 34,428 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 12,702 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned 0.13% of Westamerica Bancorporation worth $1,701,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in WABC. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Westamerica Bancorporation during the 1st quarter valued at about $113,000. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 7.3% during the first quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 5,238 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $256,000 after buying an additional 357 shares during the last quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 31.9% in the 1st quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 9,754 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $477,000 after buying an additional 2,360 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,512,538 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $171,693,000 after buying an additional 19,654 shares during the last quarter. Finally, O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 5.6% during the 1st quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 4,178 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $204,000 after acquiring an additional 221 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.89% of the company’s stock.

Westamerica Bancorporation Price Performance

Shares of WABC stock opened at $57.60 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.49 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a current ratio of 0.26. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $51.92 and its 200-day simple moving average is $50.55. Westamerica Bancorporation has a fifty-two week low of $43.82 and a fifty-two week high of $59.33.

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.27. Westamerica Bancorporation had a net margin of 45.73% and a return on equity of 17.67%. The business had revenue of $74.07 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $72.74 million. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Westamerica Bancorporation will post 5.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Westamerica Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Monday, November 4th were given a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 4th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.06%. Westamerica Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.06%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Westamerica Bancorporation from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th.

About Westamerica Bancorporation

Westamerica Bancorporation operates as a bank holding company for the Westamerica Bank that provides various banking products and services to individual and commercial customers. The company accepts various deposit products, including retail savings and checking accounts, as well as certificates of deposit.