Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) Shares Acquired by Natixis Advisors LLC

Natixis Advisors LLC grew its stake in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD - Free Report) by 14.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 86,219 shares of the technology company's stock after buying an additional 10,908 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC owned 0.14% of Woodward worth $14,787,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of WWD. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Woodward during the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Woodward during the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Woodward during the third quarter valued at approximately $41,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in shares of Woodward by 101.6% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 246 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Woodward during the second quarter valued at approximately $69,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.18% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on WWD. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Woodward from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Woodward from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $170.00 to $190.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on shares of Woodward from $228.00 to $201.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Truist Financial raised Woodward from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $152.00 to $187.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a "hold" rating and issued a $160.00 price target (down previously from $186.00) on shares of Woodward in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $174.67.

Insider Activity at Woodward

In other news, COO Thomas G. Cromwell sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.50, for a total transaction of $1,745,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 11,511 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,008,669.50. This represents a 46.49 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders have sold a total of 27,913 shares of company stock worth $4,907,304 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.12% of the company's stock.

Woodward Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WWD traded down $0.28 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $170.57. The company had a trading volume of 323,417 shares, compared to its average volume of 419,716. The company has a market capitalization of $10.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.38. Woodward, Inc. has a 1 year low of $128.52 and a 1 year high of $188.35. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $167.35 and its 200-day moving average price is $170.92. The company has a current ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Woodward Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.59%. Woodward's dividend payout ratio is presently 16.72%.

Woodward 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.