Persistent Asset Partners Ltd Invests $788,000 in Western Alliance Bancorporation $WAL

Persistent Asset Partners Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 9,091 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $788,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 2nd quarter valued at about $137,289,000. Perpetual Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the third quarter worth about $31,072,000. Global Frontier Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the second quarter valued at about $22,224,000. Smead Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 19.2% in the 2nd quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,435,247 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $111,921,000 after purchasing an additional 231,159 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. raised its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 11.3% in the 3rd quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 2,194,630 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $190,318,000 after purchasing an additional 223,425 shares during the last quarter. 79.15% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on WAL. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $104.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. UBS Group set a $106.00 target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $98.00 to $101.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $103.73.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Price Performance

Shares of WAL opened at $91.33 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $89.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $84.96. The stock has a market cap of $10.05 billion, a PE ratio of 10.46, a P/E/G ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.37. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 1-year low of $57.05 and a 1-year high of $97.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.79.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 26th. The financial services provider reported $2.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.19. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a net margin of 18.04% and a return on equity of 13.33%. The firm had revenue of $980.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $912.69 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.95 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 17.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.05 EPS for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 20th will be given a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 20th. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s payout ratio is currently 19.24%.

About Western Alliance Bancorporation

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.