Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) Shares Sold by Nuveen Asset Management LLC

Nuveen Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) by 11.1% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 583,558 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 73,219 shares during the quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation were worth $48,750,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 9.3% during the fourth quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 96,839 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,090,000 after buying an additional 8,201 shares during the last quarter. Norden Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in the fourth quarter valued at $727,000. Focus Partners Wealth increased its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 99,080 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,277,000 after buying an additional 4,909 shares in the last quarter. Generate Investment Management Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Generate Investment Management Ltd now owns 417,075 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,842,000 after buying an additional 2,772 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 8.5% in the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 16,750 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,399,000 after buying an additional 1,312 shares in the last quarter. 79.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on WAL shares. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $92.00 target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $92.00 price target on the stock. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $107.00 to $97.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $95.00 to $80.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $96.38.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of WAL opened at $77.34 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $71.88 and a 200-day simple moving average of $82.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.89, a P/E/G ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.85. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 52 week low of $56.70 and a 52 week high of $98.10.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.78 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $790.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $792.25 million. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a net margin of 15.49% and a return on equity of 13.14%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.72 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.97%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s payout ratio is 20.85%.

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.