Kennedy Capital Management LLC Cuts Stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL)

Kennedy Capital Management LLC lowered its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) by 3.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 206,297 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 7,457 shares during the quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation were worth $17,234,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of WAL. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 11.2% during the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 7,512 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $650,000 after buying an additional 758 shares during the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 368.4% during the 3rd quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 19,679 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,682,000 after buying an additional 15,478 shares during the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in the 3rd quarter valued at about $359,000. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 196.8% in the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 920 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $80,000 after purchasing an additional 610 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 123,412 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $10,674,000 after purchasing an additional 3,421 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.15% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on WAL shares. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $103.00 price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $115.00 to $116.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $107.00 to $97.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $115.00 price objective on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $96.40.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Price Performance

Western Alliance Bancorporation stock opened at $68.48 on Thursday. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 12-month low of $53.75 and a 12-month high of $98.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.65, a P/E/G ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.29. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $79.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $84.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.92 by $0.03. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a net margin of 15.49% and a return on equity of 13.14%. Equities analysts predict that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a dividend of $0.38 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.22%. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s payout ratio is currently 21.41%.

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.