Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) has earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen brokerages that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and thirteen have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $87.87.

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on WAL. Barclays increased their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $86.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Wedbush upped their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $62.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $76.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $80.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd.

Insider Buying and Selling at Western Alliance Bancorporation

In other news, insider Stephen Russell Curley sold 5,070 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.43, for a total transaction of $387,500.10. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 36,718 shares in the company, valued at $2,806,356.74. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Stephen Russell Curley sold 5,070 shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.43, for a total value of $387,500.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 36,718 shares in the company, valued at $2,806,356.74. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO J. Kelly Jr. Ardrey sold 2,116 shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.95, for a total value of $160,710.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,520 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $267,344. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 21,265 shares of company stock valued at $1,700,391 over the last three months. 2.75% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Western Alliance Bancorporation

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WAL. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 3.9% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,440,410 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $670,170,000 after buying an additional 395,101 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 1,706.9% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 30,898 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,983,000 after buying an additional 29,188 shares during the last quarter. M&G Plc raised its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 12.4% during the second quarter. M&G Plc now owns 133,670 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,421,000 after buying an additional 14,734 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 166.2% during the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 32,349 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,128,000 after buying an additional 20,198 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. raised its holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 1.3% during the second quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 1,633,261 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $102,603,000 after purchasing an additional 20,254 shares in the last quarter. 79.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Down 3.2 %

WAL opened at $83.76 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $79.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $68.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The company has a market cap of $9.22 billion, a PE ratio of 12.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.44. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 52 week low of $38.81 and a 52 week high of $88.92.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.71 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $771.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $737.97 million. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a return on equity of 13.98% and a net margin of 15.54%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.96 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 7.4 EPS for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th were given a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.57%.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Company Profile

Western Alliance Bancorporation operates as the bank holding company for Western Alliance Bank that provides various banking products and related services primarily in Arizona, California, and Nevada. It operates through Commercial and Consumer Related segments. The company offers deposit products, including checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as fixed-rate and fixed maturity certificates of deposit accounts; demand deposits; and treasury management and residential mortgage products and services.