Private Advisor Group LLC Sells 143 Shares of Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD)

Private Advisor Group LLC lowered its position in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,054 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 143 shares during the quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Woodward were worth $1,553,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of WWD. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in Woodward by 5.5% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,711 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $880,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares in the last quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Woodward during the 1st quarter valued at $332,000. Diversified Trust Co bought a new stake in Woodward during the 1st quarter valued at $698,000. State of Michigan Retirement System boosted its position in Woodward by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 14,810 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,283,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. bought a new stake in Woodward during the 1st quarter valued at $295,000. Institutional investors own 81.18% of the company’s stock.

Woodward Stock Performance

NASDAQ WWD opened at $165.30 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $165.03 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $169.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.90, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.37. Woodward, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $120.82 and a fifty-two week high of $188.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.96.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 29th. The technology company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.52 by $0.11. Woodward had a return on equity of 17.16% and a net margin of 11.47%. The business had revenue of $847.69 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $853.29 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.37 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Woodward, Inc. will post 5.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Woodward Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.60%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Woodward’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.48%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on Woodward from $158.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. StockNews.com raised Woodward from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Woodward from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $170.00 to $190.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $160.00 price objective (down previously from $186.00) on shares of Woodward in a report on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Truist Financial upgraded Woodward from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $152.00 to $187.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Woodward currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $174.67.

Woodward Company Profile

Woodward, Inc designs, manufactures, and services control solutions for the aerospace and industrial markets worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Aerospace and Industrial. The Aerospace segment provides fuel pumps, metering units, actuators, air valves, specialty valves, fuel nozzles, and thrust reverser actuation systems for turbine engines and nacelles, and flight deck controls, actuators, servocontrols, motors, and sensors for aircraft.