Barclays PLC Grows Stake in Woodward, Inc. $WWD

Barclays PLC lifted its position in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) by 198.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 274,624 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 182,600 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC owned about 0.46% of Woodward worth $69,400,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank bought a new position in Woodward in the 2nd quarter worth about $201,555,000. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership bought a new stake in shares of Woodward during the 3rd quarter valued at about $184,721,000. Findlay Park Partners LLP purchased a new position in shares of Woodward during the third quarter worth about $73,406,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Woodward during the second quarter worth about $27,617,000. Finally, Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC increased its position in shares of Woodward by 7,754.7% in the third quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 83,731 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $22,721,000 after purchasing an additional 82,665 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on WWD shares. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Woodward from $378.00 to $417.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on shares of Woodward from $430.00 to $445.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Woodward from $362.00 to $408.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Melius Research raised shares of Woodward from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Woodward from $350.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $354.80.

Woodward Stock Down 3.3%

Shares of WWD opened at $373.90 on Monday. Woodward, Inc. has a 1 year low of $146.82 and a 1 year high of $403.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 2.05 and a quick ratio of 1.36. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $353.57 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $296.16. The firm has a market cap of $22.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.96.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 2nd. The technology company reported $2.17 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.52. Woodward had a net margin of 12.89% and a return on equity of 19.07%. The firm had revenue of $996.45 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $901.92 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.35 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 28.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Woodward has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.200-8.600 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Woodward, Inc. will post 6.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Woodward Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 19th were paid a $0.32 dividend. This is a boost from Woodward’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 19th. Woodward’s payout ratio is presently 16.12%.

Woodward announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, November 20th that permits the company to buyback $1.80 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the technology company to repurchase up to 11.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Thomas G. Cromwell sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $297.88, for a total transaction of $1,489,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 15,135 shares in the company, valued at $4,508,413.80. This represents a 24.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director John D. Cohn sold 2,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $369.62, for a total value of $831,645.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 21,575 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,974,551.50. The trade was a 9.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 24,300 shares of company stock valued at $8,357,460. Company insiders own 0.71% of the company’s stock.

Woodward Company Profile

Woodward, Inc (NASDAQ: WWD) is a global leader in the design, manufacture and service of control systems and components for the aerospace and industrial markets. Founded in 1870 and headquartered in Fort Collins, Colorado, the company specializes in motion control, fuel systems, actuation, and digital control solutions. Its offerings enable precision management of flow, pressure and motion in critical applications ranging from aircraft engines and power turbines to hydraulic systems.

Woodward’s product portfolio is organized into two primary segments: Aerospace and Industrial.