Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Invests $4.47 Million in Woodward, Inc. $WWD

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 17,702 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,473,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its holdings in shares of Woodward by 35.6% in the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 25,688 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $6,300,000 after buying an additional 6,741 shares during the last quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Woodward in the third quarter worth about $2,079,000. Anchor Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Woodward in the second quarter valued at about $246,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Woodward by 7.2% in the second quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 16,681 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $4,088,000 after acquiring an additional 1,121 shares during the last quarter. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd grew its position in shares of Woodward by 213.4% during the 2nd quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 5,043 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,236,000 after acquiring an additional 3,434 shares during the period. 81.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on WWD shares. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Woodward from $345.00 to $378.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Wolfe Research set a $300.00 target price on Woodward and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Melius Research raised Woodward from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Wall Street Zen raised Woodward from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, January 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Woodward from $360.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $323.89.

Woodward Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WWD opened at $327.02 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a current ratio of 2.08. Woodward, Inc. has a 52-week low of $146.82 and a 52-week high of $339.10. The firm has a market cap of $19.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.48, a PEG ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.02. The business’s fifty day moving average is $304.38 and its 200 day moving average is $270.49.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 24th. The technology company reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.83 by $0.26. The business had revenue of $995.26 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $943.15 million. Woodward had a return on equity of 17.68% and a net margin of 12.39%.The firm’s revenue was up 16.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.41 EPS. Woodward has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.500-8.000 EPS. Research analysts predict that Woodward, Inc. will post 6.15 EPS for the current year.

Woodward declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, November 20th that allows the company to buyback $1.80 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the technology company to purchase up to 11.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Woodward news, COO Thomas G. Cromwell sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $297.88, for a total value of $1,489,400.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 15,135 shares in the company, valued at $4,508,413.80. This represents a 24.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director John D. Cohn sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $296.33, for a total transaction of $888,990.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 21,575 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,393,319.75. This trade represents a 12.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 40,000 shares of company stock worth $11,908,210. 0.71% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Woodward

Woodward, Inc (NASDAQ: WWD) is a global leader in the design, manufacture and service of control systems and components for the aerospace and industrial markets. Founded in 1870 and headquartered in Fort Collins, Colorado, the company specializes in motion control, fuel systems, actuation, and digital control solutions. Its offerings enable precision management of flow, pressure and motion in critical applications ranging from aircraft engines and power turbines to hydraulic systems.

Woodward’s product portfolio is organized into two primary segments: Aerospace and Industrial.