Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen analysts that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and fourteen have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $92.73.

WAL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $107.00 to $105.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $102.00 target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Western Alliance Bancorporation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $83.00 to $101.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. StockNews.com cut Western Alliance Bancorporation from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $85.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Trading Down 0.2 %

Western Alliance Bancorporation stock opened at $92.83 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $85.04 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $73.97. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 12 month low of $46.52 and a 12 month high of $96.45. The stock has a market cap of $10.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.44.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.80 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.90 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $833.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $811.40 million. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a return on equity of 13.16% and a net margin of 14.66%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 7.13 EPS for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a $0.38 dividend. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.64%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This is a boost from Western Alliance Bancorporation’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s payout ratio is 22.84%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Barbara Kennedy sold 11,083 shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.59, for a total value of $904,261.97. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,977 shares in the company, valued at $650,843.43. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Western Alliance Bancorporation news, insider Barbara Kennedy sold 11,083 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.59, for a total value of $904,261.97. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $650,843.43. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert P. Latta sold 2,996 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.75, for a total transaction of $247,919.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 4,056 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $335,634. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.75% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Western Alliance Bancorporation

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in the third quarter worth about $31,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the third quarter worth $33,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 136.8% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 431 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 58.4% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 507 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the period. 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.