JPMorgan Chase & Co. Purchases 48,195 Shares of Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD - Free Report) by 4.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,040,384 shares of the technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 48,195 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned about 1.75% of Woodward worth $173,141,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new stake in shares of Woodward during the third quarter worth about $28,000. Berbice Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Woodward in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. NBT Bank N A NY bought a new stake in shares of Woodward in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Mather Group LLC. increased its stake in shares of Woodward by 44.8% in the fourth quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 278 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the period. Finally, R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in Woodward during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $57,000. 81.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Woodward Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ WWD traded up $3.00 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $190.14. 336,428 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 462,267. The company has a market cap of $11.29 billion, a PE ratio of 31.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.39. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $185.83 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $177.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.89. Woodward, Inc. has a one year low of $144.45 and a one year high of $201.64.

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

Woodward Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 20th were given a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 20th. This is a positive change from Woodward's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.59%. Woodward's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.76%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Insider Transactions at Woodward

In other Woodward news, Director Gregg C. Sengstack sold 4,600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the director now owns 17,450 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,278,157. The trade was a 20.86 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Thomas G. Cromwell sold 3,300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.36, for a total value of $641,388.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 15,477 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,008,109.72. The trade was a 17.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 27,900 shares of company stock worth $5,215,444 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.82% of the company's stock.

Woodward Company 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.