Western Alliance Bancorporation $WAL Shares Sold by Ariel Investments LLC

Ariel Investments LLC lessened its stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) by 48.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 259,369 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 244,238 shares during the period. Ariel Investments LLC owned about 0.23% of Western Alliance Bancorporation worth $20,226,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. WCM Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 5.4% in the second quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 234,809 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $18,226,000 after purchasing an additional 12,116 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 17.8% during the second quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,842 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $327,000 after buying an additional 580 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 2,313,336 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $180,394,000 after acquiring an additional 20,704 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 16.8% in the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 34,078 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,618,000 after acquiring an additional 4,895 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 27.6% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 6,304 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $484,000 after acquiring an additional 1,364 shares during the period. 79.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Western Alliance Bancorporation

In other Western Alliance Bancorporation news, CFO Dale Gibbons purchased 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 30th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $77.00 per share, with a total value of $308,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 300,358 shares in the company, valued at $23,127,566. This trade represents a 1.35% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 2.75% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Cowen assumed coverage on Western Alliance Bancorporation in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research note on Tuesday, August 26th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $100.53.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Down 1.8%

WAL opened at $82.74 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $9.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.85. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $79.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $80.98. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a twelve month low of $57.05 and a twelve month high of $94.40.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a net margin of 17.14% and a return on equity of 12.93%. The company had revenue of $718.00 million for the quarter. Research analysts forecast that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.05 EPS for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 28th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 13th were given a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 13th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. This is a positive change from Western Alliance Bancorporation’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.77%.

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.