Lisanti Capital Growth LLC Acquires New Shares in Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL)

Lisanti Capital Growth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 41,760 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,612,000.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. LHM Inc. increased its holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 2,141.1% during the 2nd quarter. LHM Inc. now owns 757,809 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $47,606,000 after acquiring an additional 723,995 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 16.3% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,112,376 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $328,165,000 after buying an additional 717,242 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 20.6% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,722,389 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $233,832,000 after buying an additional 636,577 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew 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 worth $44,522,000 after buying an additional 506,778 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,440,410 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $670,170,000 after acquiring an additional 395,101 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.15% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WAL has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $82.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada set a $99.00 price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Western Alliance Bancorporation from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the company from $83.00 to $101.00 in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $85.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $107.00 to $105.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Western Alliance Bancorporation currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $92.73.

Insider Activity

In other Western Alliance Bancorporation news, insider Barbara Kennedy sold 11,083 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.59, for a total transaction of $904,261.97. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,977 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $650,843.43. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, Director Robert P. Latta sold 2,996 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.75, for a total transaction of $247,919.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,056 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $335,634. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Barbara Kennedy sold 11,083 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.59, for a total value of $904,261.97. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,977 shares of the company's stock, valued at $650,843.43. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.75% of the company's stock.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Up 3.7 %

Shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation stock traded up $3.33 on Monday, reaching $93.20. 777,390 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,318,360. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $84.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $73.48. 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 1-year low of $43.20 and a 1-year high of $96.45. The company has a market cap of $10.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.44.

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 for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $833.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $811.40 million. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 7.13 EPS for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a dividend of $0.38 per share. This is a positive change from Western Alliance Bancorporation's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.63%. Western Alliance Bancorporation's payout ratio is 22.84%.

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.