MetLife Investment Management LLC Trims Position in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD)

MetLife Investment Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 30,843 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 1,212 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC owned 0.05% of Woodward worth $5,290,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC bought a new position in Woodward in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Woodward in the second quarter worth $37,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of Woodward during the third quarter worth $41,000. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in Woodward by 101.6% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 246 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc bought a new stake in Woodward in the 2nd quarter valued at $69,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.18% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on WWD. TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating and set a $160.00 price objective (down previously from $186.00) on shares of Woodward in a report on Friday, October 4th. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $226.00 price target (up from $187.00) on shares of Woodward in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Woodward from $209.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on Woodward from $158.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Woodward from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Woodward currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $184.67.

Insider Transactions at Woodward

In related news, COO Thomas G. Cromwell sold 7,913 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.13, for a total transaction of $1,385,803.69. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 11,511 shares in the company, valued at $2,015,921.43. The trade was a 40.74 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In the last quarter, insiders sold 27,913 shares of company stock worth $4,907,304. 1.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Woodward Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WWD opened at $180.32 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.66 billion, a PE ratio of 30.00, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.38. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $169.35 and its 200 day moving average is $171.08. Woodward, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $129.96 and a fifty-two week high of $201.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.89.

Woodward Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Woodward’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.64%.

Woodward Company Profile

Woodward, Inc designs, manufactures, and services control solutions for the aerospace and industrial markets worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Aerospace and Industrial. The Aerospace segment provides fuel pumps, metering units, actuators, air valves, specialty valves, fuel nozzles, and thrust reverser actuation systems for turbine engines and nacelles, and flight deck controls, actuators, servocontrols, motors, and sensors for aircraft.