Raymond James Financial Inc. Buys New Shares in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 187,399 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $31,187,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.32% of Woodward as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WWD. True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new stake in Woodward in the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Berbice Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Woodward in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Mather Group LLC. lifted its stake in Woodward by 44.8% in the fourth quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 278 shares of the technology company's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Woodward in the fourth quarter worth about $57,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in Woodward by 52.0% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 374 shares of the technology company's stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.18% of the company's stock.

Woodward Price Performance

Shares of WWD opened at $176.86 on Friday. Woodward, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $144.29 and a fifty-two week high of $201.64. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $184.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $174.85. The company has a market cap of $10.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.62, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

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Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 3rd. The technology company reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.21. Woodward had a net margin of 11.18% and a return on equity of 16.76%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.45 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Woodward, Inc. will post 6.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Woodward Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 20th were given a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.63%. This is an increase from Woodward's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 20th. Woodward's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.76%.

Insider Activity at Woodward

In other news, Director Gregg C. Sengstack sold 4,600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $187.86, for a total value of $864,156.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 17,450 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,278,157. This trade represents a 20.86 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.82% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WWD has been the topic of a number of research reports. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Woodward from $226.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Woodward from $216.00 to $232.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. StockNews.com raised shares of Woodward from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Woodward from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Woodward from $193.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Woodward currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $197.38.

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.

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