Traders Buy Large Volume of Western Alliance Bancorporation Put Options (NYSE:WAL)

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Friday. Traders bought 9,656 put options on the company. This represents an increase of 68% compared to the typical daily volume of 5,738 put options.

Institutional Trading of Western Alliance Bancorporation

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC increased its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 5.2% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC now owns 4,984 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $413,000 after buying an additional 247 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new position in Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 1st quarter valued at about $504,000. MetLife Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 1st quarter valued at about $374,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,071,776 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $88,776,000 after buying an additional 4,468 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 13.8% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 126,197 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $10,440,000 after buying an additional 15,297 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.15% of the company’s stock.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Up 3.0 %

WAL stock opened at $57.42 on Friday. 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 has a fifty-two week low of $11.35 and a fifty-two week high of $70.23. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $59.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $56.41. The stock has a market cap of $6.33 billion, a PE ratio of 8.78 and a beta of 1.47.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 19th. The financial services provider reported $1.72 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $1.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $711.34 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.30 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 7.88 EPS for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Investors of record on Friday, February 16th were issued a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 (DPR) is presently 22.63%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $82.00 price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research note on Friday. Wedbush reduced their price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $80.00 price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research report on Friday, March 8th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $91.00 price target on the stock. Finally, DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and issued a $85.00 price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $71.36.

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.