Blueshift Asset Management LLC Takes Position in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD)

Blueshift Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,424 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $237,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its position in Woodward by 60.4% during the fourth quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 23,554 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $3,920,000 after acquiring an additional 8,873 shares in the last quarter. Xponance Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Woodward by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 6,749 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $1,123,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Woodward by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 17,461 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $2,906,000 after purchasing an additional 1,213 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Woodward by 123.9% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 7,567 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $1,259,000 after purchasing an additional 4,188 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Woodward by 14.9% in the fourth quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 99,057 shares of the technology company's stock worth $16,485,000 after purchasing an additional 12,838 shares in the last quarter. 81.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Insider Buying and Selling at Woodward

In other Woodward news, COO Thomas G. Cromwell sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.50, for a total value of $1,845,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 15,477 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,855,506.50. The trade was a 39.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gregg C. Sengstack sold 4,600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $187.86, for a total value of $864,156.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 17,450 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,278,157. This trade represents a 20.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.82% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WWD has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group boosted their price target on Woodward from $216.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays boosted their target price on Woodward from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Woodward from $193.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Woodward from $226.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Woodward from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $197.38.

Woodward Price Performance

WWD traded down $4.89 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $188.19. 706,238 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 450,575. Woodward, Inc. has a one year low of $144.45 and a one year high of $201.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.39. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $186.08 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $176.31. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The technology company reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.21. Woodward had a return on equity of 16.76% and a net margin of 11.18%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.45 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Woodward, Inc. will post 6.15 EPS for the current year.

Woodward Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 20th were issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. This is an increase from Woodward's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.60%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 20th. Woodward's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.76%.

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.