Cerity Partners LLC Purchases 1,752 Shares of Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE:WD)

Cerity Partners LLC grew its holdings in Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE:WD) by 79.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,957 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,752 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in Walker & Dunlop were worth $449,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WD. National Bank of Canada FI increased its holdings in Walker & Dunlop by 205.6% in the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 275 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of Walker & Dunlop by 1,295.8% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 335 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 311 shares during the period. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. increased its stake in shares of Walker & Dunlop by 44.5% in the 2nd quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 575 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $56,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Walker & Dunlop by 64.7% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 654 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $74,000 after acquiring an additional 257 shares during the period. Finally, Asset Dedication LLC bought a new position in Walker & Dunlop during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $94,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.97% of the company’s stock.

Walker & Dunlop Stock Performance

Shares of WD opened at $108.79 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $3.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.85 and a beta of 1.53. Walker & Dunlop, Inc. has a twelve month low of $87.20 and a twelve month high of $118.19. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $110.58 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $104.75.

Walker & Dunlop (NYSE:WD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The financial services provider reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.29 by ($0.10). The company had revenue of $292.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $294.24 million. Walker & Dunlop had a net margin of 8.91% and a return on equity of 9.81%. The company’s revenue was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.11 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Walker & Dunlop, Inc. will post 5.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walker & Dunlop Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Friday, November 22nd were issued a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.39%. Walker & Dunlop’s payout ratio is presently 92.86%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on WD. Wolfe Research raised shares of Walker & Dunlop to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Wedbush raised their price objective on Walker & Dunlop from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Walker & Dunlop from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, August 11th.

Walker & Dunlop Company Profile

Walker & Dunlop, Inc, through its subsidiaries, originates, sells, and services a range of multifamily and other commercial real estate financing products and services for owners and developers of real estate in the United States. It operates through three segments: Capital Markets, Servicing & Asset Management, and Corporate.