Westamerica Bancorporation $WABC Shares Acquired by SG Americas Securities LLC

SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) by 87.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 32,499 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 15,157 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC owned approximately 0.13% of Westamerica Bancorporation worth $1,554,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 101.3% during the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 399,197 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $19,956,000 after purchasing an additional 200,884 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its holdings in Westamerica Bancorporation by 87.2% in the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 309,953 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $15,014,000 after purchasing an additional 144,405 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new position in Westamerica Bancorporation in the 3rd quarter valued at about $5,831,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd grew its position in Westamerica Bancorporation by 63.4% in the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 176,908 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,569,000 after buying an additional 68,638 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC increased its stake in Westamerica Bancorporation by 815.8% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 67,469 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,416,000 after buying an additional 60,102 shares during the period. 81.89% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded Westamerica Bancorporation from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Wall Street Zen lowered Westamerica Bancorporation from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, February 14th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Westamerica Bancorporation from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Westamerica Bancorporation has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $52.50.

Westamerica Bancorporation Price Performance

NASDAQ:WABC opened at $52.38 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $1.27 billion, a PE ratio of 11.59 and a beta of 0.57. Westamerica Bancorporation has a fifty-two week low of $42.00 and a fifty-two week high of $53.48. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $51.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $49.40.

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $63.31 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $61.90 million. Westamerica Bancorporation had a return on equity of 12.52% and a net margin of 42.75%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Westamerica Bancorporation will post 4.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Westamerica Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 2nd were given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 2nd. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.5%. Westamerica Bancorporation’s payout ratio is currently 40.71%.

Westamerica Bancorporation declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, December 18th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 0.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

About Westamerica Bancorporation

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ: WABC) is a California-based bank holding company that provides a comprehensive suite of commercial banking, trust and wealth management services. Through its primary subsidiary, Westamerica Bank, the company offers deposit products, lending solutions and treasury management to a diverse clientele that includes small and mid-sized businesses, professionals, non-profit organizations and individuals.

The company’s lending portfolio encompasses commercial real estate financing, agricultural loans, equipment financing and lines of credit designed to support working capital needs.