Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen research firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has issued a hold recommendation and thirteen have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $102.20.

Several brokerages recently issued reports on WAL. Truist Financial set a $98.00 target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research note on Friday, January 9th. National Bankshares set a $118.00 price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $107.00 target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WAL opened at $88.48 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The business has a 50-day moving average of $84.02 and a 200-day moving average of $83.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.94, a PEG ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 1.34. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a fifty-two week low of $57.05 and a fifty-two week high of $94.40.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.11 by $0.17. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a return on equity of 12.93% and a net margin of 17.14%.The firm had revenue of $841.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $891.04 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.80 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 14.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 28th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 13th were issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 13th. This is an increase from Western Alliance Bancorporation’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s payout ratio is 20.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Dale Gibbons acquired 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 30th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $77.00 per share, for a total transaction of $308,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 300,358 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,127,566. This represents a 1.35% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 2.68% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Western Alliance Bancorporation

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 16.1% during the fourth quarter. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,098 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $849,000 after buying an additional 1,400 shares in the last quarter. Burns Matteson Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 4th quarter worth $540,000. Brady Martz Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 4th quarter worth $355,000. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated boosted its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 8.5% in the fourth quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 15,540 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,315,000 after buying an additional 1,222 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Generate Investment Management Ltd boosted its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 14.3% in the fourth quarter. Generate Investment Management Ltd now owns 160,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $13,451,000 after buying an additional 20,000 shares in the last quarter. 79.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.