Bank of Montreal Can Buys 382,513 Shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL)

Bank of Montreal Can grew its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Free Report) by 973.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 421,822 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 382,513 shares during the quarter. Bank of Montreal Can owned approximately 0.38% of Western Alliance Bancorporation worth $35,239,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 56.0% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 326 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 70.1% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 330 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 115.6% during the fourth 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. Finally, Atala Financial Inc bought a new position in Western Alliance Bancorporation during the fourth quarter valued at about $44,000. Institutional investors own 79.15% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WAL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays cut their price objective on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $107.00 to $97.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $103.00 price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $110.00 to $105.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. DA Davidson dropped their target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $110.00 to $106.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Western Alliance Bancorporation presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $96.40.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Performance

Shares of WAL stock traded up $0.08 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $66.15. The stock had a trading volume of 173,628 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,291,703. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a one year low of $53.75 and a one year high of $98.10. The firm has a market cap of $7.31 billion, a PE ratio of 9.32, a P/E/G ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.29. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $77.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $84.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $1.92 by $0.03. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a net margin of 15.49% and a return on equity of 13.14%. On average, analysts forecast that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.05 EPS for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were given a $0.38 dividend. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Western Alliance Bancorporation's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.