B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG Sells 5,281 Shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL)

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG lowered its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Free Report) by 9.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 49,474 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 5,281 shares during the quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG's holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation were worth $4,133,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp increased its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 46.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,488,345 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $388,197,000 after purchasing an additional 1,418,472 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 93.3% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,793,014 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $241,568,000 after buying an additional 1,347,921 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 4.1% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,896,377 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $164,019,000 after buying an additional 74,956 shares during the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. lifted its holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 1,883,743 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $157,369,000 after buying an additional 81,238 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 6.9% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,880,681 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $162,701,000 after acquiring an additional 120,729 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.15% of the company's stock.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Down 5.1 %

Shares of WAL traded down $3.32 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $61.95. The stock had a trading volume of 3,244,034 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,192,121. The firm has a market cap of $6.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $82.44 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $85.63. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a twelve month low of $53.75 and a twelve month high of $98.10. 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 - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.92 by $0.03. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a return on equity of 13.14% and a net margin of 15.49%. On average, analysts anticipate that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.05 EPS for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Western Alliance Bancorporation's payout ratio is 21.41%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on WAL. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $102.00 to $95.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group initiated coverage on Western Alliance Bancorporation in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $115.00 target price on the stock. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and set a $103.00 target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $110.00 to $105.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, DA Davidson lowered their target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $110.00 to $106.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $98.07.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Profile

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.