Walker & Dunlop (NYSE:WD) Sets New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE:WD) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $116.43 and last traded at $115.59, with a volume of 29276 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $115.41.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WD has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wolfe Research upgraded Walker & Dunlop to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Walker & Dunlop from $105.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Wedbush lifted their price objective on shares of Walker & Dunlop from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Walker & Dunlop from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, August 11th.

Walker & Dunlop Trading Up 0.2 %

The company has a market cap of $3.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.61 and a beta of 1.55. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $107.68 and a 200-day moving average price of $100.87.

Walker & Dunlop (NYSE:WD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The financial services provider reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.16 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $270.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $274.50 million. Walker & Dunlop had a net margin of 8.41% and a return on equity of 9.65%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.98 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Walker & Dunlop, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Walker & Dunlop Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 22nd were given a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 22nd. Walker & Dunlop’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 100.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walker & Dunlop

In other news, COO Stephen P. Theobald sold 13,870 shares of Walker & Dunlop stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.10, for a total transaction of $1,471,607.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 53,869 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,715,500.90. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 5.26% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Walker & Dunlop

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Creative Planning lifted its holdings in Walker & Dunlop by 42.3% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 16,022 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,820,000 after purchasing an additional 4,764 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Walker & Dunlop by 64.7% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 654 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $74,000 after buying an additional 257 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its holdings in shares of Walker & Dunlop by 14.2% during the third quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 6,451 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $733,000 after buying an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Algert Global LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walker & Dunlop in the second quarter valued at about $332,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in shares of Walker & Dunlop by 6.8% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 18,212 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,788,000 after acquiring an additional 1,156 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.97% of the company’s stock.

Walker & Dunlop Company Profile

Walker & Dunlop, Inc, through its subsidiaries, originates, sells, and services a range of multifamily and other commercial real estate financing products and services for owners and developers of real estate in the United States. It operates through three segments: Capital Markets, Servicing & Asset Management, and Corporate.