Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE:WD) Shares Sold by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE:WD - Free Report) by 9.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 151,684 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 15,350 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.45% of Walker & Dunlop worth $17,230,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WD. Impactive Capital LP increased its stake in Walker & Dunlop by 242.0% during the first quarter. Impactive Capital LP now owns 1,034,093 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $104,505,000 after acquiring an additional 731,714 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Walker & Dunlop by 13.8% during the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,063,522 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $104,438,000 after acquiring an additional 129,289 shares during the last quarter. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walker & Dunlop in the 3rd quarter worth about $8,156,000. GPM Growth Investors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Walker & Dunlop during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $4,595,000. Finally, Castleark Management LLC bought a new stake in Walker & Dunlop during the 1st quarter valued at $4,297,000. 80.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Walker & Dunlop Stock Performance

NYSE WD traded down $0.83 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $106.74. The stock had a trading volume of 41,755 shares, compared to its average volume of 201,314. Walker & Dunlop, Inc. has a 52-week low of $81.14 and a 52-week high of $118.19. The stock has a market cap of $3.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.02 and a beta of 1.55. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $110.53 and a 200 day moving average of $103.41.

Walker & Dunlop (NYSE:WD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The financial services provider reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.29 by ($0.10). The company had revenue of $292.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $294.24 million. Walker & Dunlop had a net margin of 8.91% and a return on equity of 9.81%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.11 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Walker & Dunlop, Inc. will post 5.18 EPS for the current year.

Walker & Dunlop Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Friday, November 22nd will be issued a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.44%. Walker & Dunlop's payout ratio is 92.86%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WD has been the topic of several research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Walker & Dunlop from $105.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. StockNews.com raised shares of Walker & Dunlop from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, August 11th. Wolfe Research upgraded Walker & Dunlop to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Wedbush increased their price target on shares of Walker & Dunlop from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th.

Insider Transactions at Walker & Dunlop

In other news, COO Stephen P. Theobald sold 13,870 shares of Walker & Dunlop stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.10, for a total value of $1,471,607.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 53,869 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,715,500.90. The trade was a 20.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 5.47% of the company's stock.

Walker & Dunlop Company Profile

Walker & Dunlop, Inc, through its subsidiaries, originates, sells, and services a range of multifamily and other commercial real estate financing products and services for owners and developers of real estate in the United States. It operates through three segments: Capital Markets, Servicing & Asset Management, and Corporate.