Principal Financial Group Inc. Acquires 95,173 Shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Free Report) by 18.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 609,941 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 95,173 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.55% of Western Alliance Bancorporation worth $50,954,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 70.1% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 330 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP increased its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 115.6% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 401 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 215 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 58.4% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 507 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 187 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd lifted its holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 167.5% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 634 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 397 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. grew its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 338.1% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 679 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 524 shares during the period. 79.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on WAL shares. Barclays raised their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $105.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and set a $103.00 target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut 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. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $102.00 to $95.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, February 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $98.07.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Down 1.1 %

WAL traded down $0.92 on Monday, hitting $86.12. 1,325,860 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,208,318. The stock's fifty day moving average is $86.70 and its 200-day moving average is $85.95. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 12 month low of $53.75 and a 12 month high of $98.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.85. The company has a market cap of $9.48 billion, a PE ratio of 12.13, a PEG ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.46.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.92 by $0.03. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a return on equity of 13.14% and a net margin of 15.49%. Equities research analysts predict that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $0.38 dividend. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Western Alliance Bancorporation's dividend payout ratio is currently 21.41%.

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.