First Eagle Investment Management LLC Increases Holdings in Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE:WD)

First Eagle Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE:WD) by 107.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 5,496 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,851 shares during the period. First Eagle Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Walker & Dunlop were worth $534,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. National Bank of Canada FI raised its position in shares of Walker & Dunlop by 42.2% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 391 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Walker & Dunlop by 230.8% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 751 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $72,000 after purchasing an additional 524 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its stake in shares of Walker & Dunlop by 28.4% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,203 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $137,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares during the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walker & Dunlop by 42.9% during the 4th quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 2,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $194,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the period. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walker & Dunlop during the 4th quarter worth about $229,000. 80.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Walker & Dunlop Stock Up 2.8 %

WD opened at $87.33 on Monday. Walker & Dunlop, Inc. has a 52 week low of $81.07 and a 52 week high of $118.19. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $90.12 and a 200-day simple moving average of $101.57. The firm has a market cap of $2.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.38 and a beta of 1.63.

Walker & Dunlop (NYSE:WD) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The financial services provider reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.52 by ($0.18). The firm had revenue of $341.45 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $316.82 million. Walker & Dunlop had a net margin of 9.55% and a return on equity of 9.64%. Sell-side analysts expect that Walker & Dunlop, Inc. will post 4.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Walker & Dunlop Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.67 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This is a positive change from Walker & Dunlop’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.07%. Walker & Dunlop’s dividend payout ratio is 84.01%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Walker & Dunlop from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 6th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walker & Dunlop

In related news, CEO William M. Walker bought 17,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $86.21 per share, for a total transaction of $1,508,675.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 411,271 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,455,672.91. This trade represents a 4.44 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 5.47% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Walker & Dunlop Profile

Walker & Dunlop, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the provision of commercial real estate and finance services. It operates through the following segments: Capital Markets, Servicing and Asset Management, and Corporate. The Capital Markets segment offers a comprehensive range of commercial real estate finance products to customers.