Brokerages Set Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) Target Price at $100.53

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $102.8667.

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a report on Monday. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 25th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $112.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Cowen began coverage on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock.

Insider Activity

In other Western Alliance Bancorporation news, CFO Dale Gibbons acquired 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 30th. The stock was bought at an average price of $77.00 per share, for a total transaction of $308,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer directly owned 300,358 shares in the company, valued at $23,127,566. The trade was a 1.35% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 2.75% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 215.8% in the 1st quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 18,993 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,459,000 after buying an additional 12,979 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 68.6% during the first quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 28,242 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,170,000 after acquiring an additional 11,492 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 16.8% in the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 34,078 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,618,000 after purchasing an additional 4,895 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 0.3% in the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 914,816 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $70,285,000 after purchasing an additional 2,762 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 15.9% during the 1st quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 3,731 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $287,000 after purchasing an additional 511 shares during the period. 79.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WAL opened at $86.52 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $80.41 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $81.97. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 52 week low of $57.05 and a 52 week high of $94.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.69, a PEG ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 1.37.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a net margin of 17.14% and a return on equity of 12.93%. The firm had revenue of $718.00 million during the quarter. On average, analysts expect that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 13th were issued a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 13th. This is a positive change from Western Alliance Bancorporation’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.77%.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Company Profile

Western Alliance Bancorporation is a bank holding company headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona. Through its principal subsidiary, Western Alliance Bank, the company provides a range of banking services to commercial clients, entrepreneurs and real estate developers. As one of the largest regional banks in the western United States, it focuses on relationship-driven banking solutions tailored to niche industries and growing businesses.

The company’s core offerings include deposit products, treasury management and a variety of lending services.