Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL)’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $80.74, but opened at $71.25. Western Alliance Bancorporation shares last traded at $69.64, with a volume of 1,150,771 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $98.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. National Alliance Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a report on Friday. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $104.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $105.00 target price (up from $100.00) on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $98.00 target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Western Alliance Bancorporation currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $103.40.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Down 8.4%

The firm has a market cap of $8.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.47, a PEG ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.34. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $88.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $85.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.85.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $2.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $890.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $912.69 million. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a net margin of 18.04% and a return on equity of 13.33%. The business’s revenue was up 17.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.95 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.05 EPS for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 20th were paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 20th. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.24%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Western Alliance Bancorporation

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Quent Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC purchased a new position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Clearstead Advisors LLC grew its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 144.6% in the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 411 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.15% of the company’s stock.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Company Profile

Western Alliance Bancorporation is a bank holding company headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona. Through its principal subsidiary, Western Alliance Bank, the company provides a range of banking services to commercial clients, entrepreneurs and real estate developers. As one of the largest regional banks in the western United States, it focuses on relationship-driven banking solutions tailored to niche industries and growing businesses.

The company’s core offerings include deposit products, treasury management and a variety of lending services.