Walker & Dunlop (NYSE:WD) Sets New 1-Year Low – Here’s What Happened

Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE:WD)’s share price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $84.29 and last traded at $85.17, with a volume of 218590 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $86.44.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on Walker & Dunlop from $120.00 to $105.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th.

Walker & Dunlop Stock Performance

The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $95.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $103.99. The company has a market capitalization of $2.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.70 and a beta of 1.55.

Walker & Dunlop (NYSE:WD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The financial services provider reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.52 by ($0.18). Walker & Dunlop had a net margin of 9.55% and a return on equity of 9.64%. The company had revenue of $341.45 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $316.82 million. As a group, analysts expect that Walker & Dunlop, Inc. will post 4.76 EPS for the current year.

Walker & Dunlop Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.67 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This is a boost from Walker & Dunlop’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.15%. Walker & Dunlop’s payout ratio is currently 81.50%.

Institutional Trading of Walker & Dunlop

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Erste Asset Management GmbH purchased a new position in Walker & Dunlop in the 3rd quarter valued at about $19,843,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Walker & Dunlop by 29.3% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 72,649 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,252,000 after purchasing an additional 16,481 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Walker & Dunlop by 2,259,700.0% in the 3rd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 22,598 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,567,000 after purchasing an additional 22,597 shares in the last quarter. Weiss Asset Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Walker & Dunlop in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,568,000. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Walker & Dunlop by 11,259.2% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 13,631 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,548,000 after purchasing an additional 13,511 shares in the last quarter. 80.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Walker & Dunlop

Walker & Dunlop, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the provision of commercial real estate and finance services. It operates through the following segments: Capital Markets, Servicing and Asset Management, and Corporate. The Capital Markets segment offers a comprehensive range of commercial real estate finance products to customers.