Westwood Holdings Group (NYSE:WHG) Now Covered by StockNews.com

StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Westwood Holdings Group (NYSE:WHG) in a research note issued to investors on Monday. The brokerage issued a buy rating on the asset manager’s stock.

Westwood Holdings Group Trading Up 2.5 %

WHG stock opened at $15.80 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $13.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $12.95. The company has a market capitalization of $146.78 million, a P/E ratio of 21.64 and a beta of 1.15. Westwood Holdings Group has a twelve month low of $8.95 and a twelve month high of $18.03.

Westwood Holdings Group (NYSE:WHG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The asset manager reported ($0.18) earnings per share for the quarter. The company had revenue of $22.69 million for the quarter. Westwood Holdings Group had a return on equity of 7.86% and a net margin of 7.63%.

Westwood Holdings Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. Westwood Holdings Group’s payout ratio is currently 82.19%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Westwood Holdings Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in WHG. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in Westwood Holdings Group by 2.2% during the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 584,118 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $8,294,000 after purchasing an additional 12,680 shares during the last quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Westwood Holdings Group by 2.9% in the 2nd quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 459,320 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $5,595,000 after buying an additional 13,012 shares during the period. Garner Asset Management Corp grew its position in shares of Westwood Holdings Group by 85.4% during the 2nd quarter. Garner Asset Management Corp now owns 116,937 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,424,000 after buying an additional 53,870 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Westwood Holdings Group by 2.4% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 243,897 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,971,000 after acquiring an additional 5,793 shares during the period. Finally, Gabelli Funds LLC lifted its holdings in Westwood Holdings Group by 5.2% in the first quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 104,673 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,290,000 after acquiring an additional 5,127 shares during the last quarter. 56.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Westwood Holdings Group

Westwood Holdings Group, Inc, through its subsidiaries, manages investment assets and provides services for its clients. The company operates in two segments, Advisory and Trust. The Advisory segment provides investment advisory services to corporate retirement plans, public retirement plans, endowments, foundations, individuals, and the Westwood Funds; and investment sub-advisory services to mutual funds, pooled investment vehicles, and its Trust segment.