SG Americas Securities LLC Sells 92,180 Shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL)

SG Americas Securities LLC trimmed its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) by 98.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,710 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 92,180 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation were worth $113,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Guggenheim Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 3.2% during the first quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 4,831 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $400,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares in the last quarter. Utah Retirement Systems raised its holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 1.1% during the first quarter. Utah Retirement Systems now owns 18,511 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,534,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Riverwater Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Riverwater Partners LLC now owns 29,180 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,920,000 after buying an additional 211 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 33.8% during the second quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 931 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 235 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina raised its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 47,472 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,182,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. 79.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on WAL shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Barclays initiated coverage on Western Alliance Bancorporation in a report on Friday, March 8th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $91.00 price target for the company. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $82.00 price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research note on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $72.00 to $68.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $78.00 price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $71.36.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Up 3.0 %

WAL opened at $57.42 on Friday. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a twelve month low of $11.35 and a twelve month high of $70.23. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $59.50 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $56.41. The stock has a market cap of $6.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.78 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The financial services provider reported $1.72 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.03. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a net margin of 16.74% and a return on equity of 16.33%. The company had revenue of $1.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $711.34 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.30 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 7.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 16th were given a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 15th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.58%. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.63%.

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.