Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE:WD) Stake Lifted by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE:WD - Free Report) by 11.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 49,012 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 4,996 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 0.15% of Walker & Dunlop worth $4,764,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Walker & Dunlop in the fourth quarter worth about $40,226,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P purchased a new stake in Walker & Dunlop during the 4th quarter worth $17,384,000. M.D. Sass LLC boosted its position in Walker & Dunlop by 57.4% in the 4th quarter. M.D. Sass LLC now owns 264,855 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $25,747,000 after buying an additional 96,563 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Walker & Dunlop by 111.3% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 153,539 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $14,926,000 after acquiring an additional 80,890 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its holdings in Walker & Dunlop by 380.1% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 56,520 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $6,420,000 after purchasing an additional 44,748 shares during the last quarter. 80.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Walker & Dunlop Trading Up 0.2 %

Walker & Dunlop stock traded up $0.15 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $74.22. The company's stock had a trading volume of 19,969 shares, compared to its average volume of 192,214. Walker & Dunlop, Inc. has a twelve month low of $69.59 and a twelve month high of $118.19. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $83.95 and a 200-day moving average price of $97.19. The firm has a market cap of $2.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.17 and a beta of 1.42.

Walker & Dunlop (NYSE:WD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The financial services provider reported $1.34 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 business had revenue of $341.45 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $316.82 million. On average, equities analysts expect that Walker & Dunlop, Inc. will post 4.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walker & Dunlop Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a $0.67 dividend. This is an increase from Walker & Dunlop's previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.61%. Walker & Dunlop's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 84.01%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Walker & Dunlop from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $105.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 6th.

Insider Activity at Walker & Dunlop

In other news, CEO William M. Walker bought 17,500 shares of Walker & Dunlop stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $86.21 per share, with a total value of $1,508,675.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 411,271 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $35,455,672.91. This trade represents a 4.44 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 3.66% of the company's stock.

Walker & Dunlop Profile

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.