Argent Capital Management LLC Takes Position in Woodward, Inc. $WWD

Argent Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 10,612 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,208,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WWD. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Woodward in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $201,555,000. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership purchased a new stake in shares of Woodward in the third quarter valued at $184,721,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Woodward by 122.0% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 905,578 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $228,849,000 after purchasing an additional 497,722 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP boosted its position in shares of Woodward by 1,086.9% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 330,514 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $83,524,000 after buying an additional 302,666 shares during the period. Finally, Findlay Park Partners LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Woodward in the third quarter worth $73,406,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.18% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director John D. Cohn sold 2,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $369.62, for a total value of $831,645.00. Following the sale, the director owned 21,575 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,974,551.50. This trade represents a 9.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Charles P. Blankenship sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $367.40, for a total transaction of $1,837,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 65,854 shares in the company, valued at $24,194,759.60. This trade represents a 7.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 26,925 shares of company stock valued at $10,203,160. Corporate insiders own 0.71% of the company’s stock.

Woodward Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WWD opened at $367.99 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.94 billion, a PE ratio of 46.35, a PEG ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.96. Woodward, Inc. has a 1 year low of $146.82 and a 1 year high of $403.31. The company has a current ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $364.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $303.23.

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

Woodward declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, November 20th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.80 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the technology company to reacquire up to 11.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Woodward Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on WWD. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Woodward in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Zacks Research upgraded Woodward from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on Woodward from $430.00 to $445.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Woodward from $366.00 to $404.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $450.00 price target on shares of Woodward in a report on Sunday, February 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Woodward presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $354.80.

About Woodward

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.