Jackson Square Capital LLC Boosts Stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL)

Jackson Square Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Free Report) by 64.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 33,114 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 12,972 shares during the quarter. Jackson Square Capital LLC's holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation were worth $2,766,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 46.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,488,345 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $388,197,000 after acquiring an additional 1,418,472 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 93.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,793,014 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $241,568,000 after purchasing an additional 1,347,921 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 6,342.7% during 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 buying an additional 506,778 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 3rd quarter valued at $39,230,000. Finally, Westfield Capital Management Co. LP purchased a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in the 3rd quarter worth about $38,386,000. 79.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WAL has been the topic of several research reports. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $105.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. UBS Group assumed coverage on Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $115.00 price target on the stock. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $102.00 price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research report on Friday, October 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped 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 note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $94.31.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Performance

Shares of WAL stock traded up $2.56 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $89.61. 1,147,798 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 979,410. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $88.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $82.90. The company has a market cap of $9.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.83, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.46. 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 has a 12-month low of $53.75 and a 12-month high of $98.10.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.80 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.90 by ($0.10). Western Alliance Bancorporation had a return on equity of 13.16% and a net margin of 14.66%. The firm had revenue of $833.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $811.40 million. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 7.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were paid a $0.38 dividend. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.70%. This is an increase from Western Alliance Bancorporation's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. Western Alliance Bancorporation's dividend payout ratio is presently 23.46%.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Company 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.