Salzhauer Michael Lowers Stock Position in Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL)

Salzhauer Michael cut its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Free Report) by 76.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,895 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 58,297 shares during the quarter. Western Alliance Bancorporation comprises about 0.5% of Salzhauer Michael's holdings, making the stock its 28th largest position. Salzhauer Michael's holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation were worth $1,495,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WAL. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,736,263 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $479,207,000 after acquiring an additional 278,041 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. raised its holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 1,883,743 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $157,369,000 after buying an additional 81,238 shares during the last quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC grew its stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 55.7% in the fourth quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 1,814,745 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $151,604,000 after purchasing an additional 648,983 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $109,298,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 18.5% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 609,941 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $50,954,000 after purchasing an additional 95,173 shares in the last quarter. 79.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on WAL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $110.00 to $105.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. DA Davidson cut their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $110.00 to $106.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $95.00 to $80.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $107.00 to $97.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Western Alliance Bancorporation currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $95.67.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of WAL stock traded down $0.68 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $64.20. The stock had a trading volume of 589,901 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,205,930. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The firm's 50-day moving average is $76.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $83.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.29. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 12-month low of $56.70 and a 12-month high of $98.10.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.79 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.78 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $790.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $792.25 million. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a net margin of 15.49% and a return on equity of 13.14%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.72 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a dividend of $0.38 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.37%. Western Alliance Bancorporation's dividend payout ratio is presently 21.41%.

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.