Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) Shares Purchased by Janus Henderson Group PLC

Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) by 23.5% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 2,341,553 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 445,176 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC’s holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation were worth $195,616,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Western Alliance Bancorporation during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 56.0% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 326 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 70.1% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 330 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 115.6% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 401 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 215 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Atala Financial Inc acquired a new position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in the fourth quarter worth $44,000. 79.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Performance

Shares of WAL stock opened at $74.44 on Monday. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 1-year low of $56.70 and a 1-year high of $98.10. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The company has a market capitalization of $8.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.48, a P/E/G ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.30. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $71.61 and its 200-day simple moving average is $82.26.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.78 by $0.01. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a return on equity of 13.14% and a net margin of 15.49%. The business had revenue of $790.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $792.25 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.72 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a $0.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.04%. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.85%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $105.00 to $85.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $95.00 to $80.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. DA Davidson decreased their target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $106.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. StockNews.com upgraded Western Alliance Bancorporation from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $107.00 to $97.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $96.62.

About Western Alliance Bancorporation

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.