Insider Selling: Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) CAO Sells 5,946 Shares of Stock

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) CAO Ben Mucha sold 5,946 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.00, for a total value of $481,626.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 3,485 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $282,285. This represents a 63.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Performance

Shares of WAL stock traded down $0.23 on Wednesday, hitting $81.67. 514,414 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,245,671. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $77.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $81.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.92 billion, a PE ratio of 9.51, a P/E/G ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 1.34. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a one year low of $65.82 and a one year high of $97.23.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.74. The business had revenue of $968.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $944.18 million. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a return on equity of 13.58% and a net margin of 17.03%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 31.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.79 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 14th were paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 14th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s payout ratio is 19.56%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays reduced their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $90.00 to $88.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Western Alliance Bancorporation from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Jefferies Financial Group restated an “overweight” rating and set a $105.00 price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $103.00 to $96.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $92.93.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WAL. Clearstead Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 144.6% during the fourth quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 411 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Community Bank N.A. bought a new position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the third quarter valued at $37,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 113.0% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 443 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 86.0% during the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 560 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 259 shares in the last quarter. 79.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.