Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday.
A number of other research firms have also weighed in on WWD. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Woodward from $216.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Truist Financial upped their target price on Woodward from $226.00 to $229.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Barclays lifted their price target on Woodward from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Woodward from $193.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $197.38.
Get Our Latest Research Report on WWD
Woodward Price Performance
Shares of NASDAQ WWD traded up $4.69 during trading on Friday, hitting $177.93. The company had a trading volume of 607,812 shares, compared to its average volume of 459,789. Woodward has a fifty-two week low of $144.13 and a fifty-two week high of $201.64. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $184.39 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $174.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.39.
Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 3rd. The technology company reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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, research analysts expect that Woodward will post 6.15 earnings per share for the current year.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In related news, Director Gregg C. Sengstack sold 4,600 shares of the company'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 transaction of $864,156.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 17,450 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,278,157. This represents a 20.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.82% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Woodward
A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WWD. Naya Capital Management UK Ltd. raised its stake in Woodward by 130.2% in the fourth quarter. Naya Capital Management UK Ltd. now owns 1,328,765 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $221,133,000 after buying an additional 751,541 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Woodward during the fourth quarter worth approximately $120,220,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Woodward by 135.1% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 992,189 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $170,170,000 after purchasing an additional 570,124 shares in the last quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Woodward by 31.8% in the fourth quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC now owns 1,521,300 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $253,175,000 after purchasing an additional 367,300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Woodward during the 4th quarter worth $31,187,000. 81.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
About Woodward
(
Get Free Report)
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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