Fmr LLC Raises Position in Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL)

FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Free Report) by 93.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,793,014 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 1,347,921 shares during the quarter. FMR LLC owned approximately 2.54% of Western Alliance Bancorporation worth $241,568,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of WAL. LHM Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 2,141.1% in the second quarter. LHM Inc. now owns 757,809 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $47,606,000 after purchasing an additional 723,995 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 20.6% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,722,389 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $233,832,000 after acquiring an additional 636,577 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 6,342.7% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 514,768 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $44,522,000 after purchasing an additional 506,778 shares in the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP purchased a new position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in the 3rd quarter worth $38,386,000. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can grew its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 41.4% in the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 596,262 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $37,475,000 after acquiring an additional 174,682 shares in the last quarter. 79.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Western Alliance Bancorporation news, Director Robert P. Latta sold 2,996 shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.75, for a total transaction of $247,919.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 4,056 shares in the company, valued at $335,634. This trade represents a 42.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 2.75% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on WAL shares. StockNews.com downgraded Western Alliance Bancorporation from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $102.00 to $101.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $85.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $102.00 price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Wedbush raised their target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Western Alliance Bancorporation has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $92.73.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Price Performance

Shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation stock traded up $0.08 on Monday, hitting $93.69. 242,232 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,286,987. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 1-year low of $53.22 and a 1-year high of $98.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $87.69 and a 200 day moving average price of $76.76.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.90 by ($0.10). Western Alliance Bancorporation had a net margin of 14.66% and a return on equity of 13.16%. The company had revenue of $833.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $811.40 million. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 7.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a $0.38 dividend. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.62%. This is a positive change from Western Alliance Bancorporation's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. Western Alliance Bancorporation's payout ratio is presently 23.46%.

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.