Bridges Investment Management Inc. Trims Stock Position in Woodward, Inc. $WWD

Bridges Investment Management Inc. lowered its position in shares of Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) by 35.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,785 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 1,535 shares during the period. Bridges Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Woodward were worth $842,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of WWD. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new position in Woodward during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new position in Woodward during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its stake in Woodward by 131.1% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 282 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $85,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in Woodward by 36.1% during the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 347 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $88,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Woodward by 107.6% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 411 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $101,000 after acquiring an additional 213 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.18% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Charles P. Blankenship sold 2,625 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $384.80, for a total transaction of $1,010,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 65,854 shares in the company, valued at $25,340,619.20. This represents a 3.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Karrie M. Bem sold 185 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $355.00, for a total transaction of $65,675.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 3,648 shares in the company, valued at $1,295,040. The trade was a 4.83% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 8,554 shares of company stock valued at $3,183,170 over the last quarter. 0.71% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on WWD. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of Woodward in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. They set an “overweight” rating and a $440.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Woodward from $427.00 to $429.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on shares of Woodward in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $450.00 target price for the company. Susquehanna began coverage on shares of Woodward in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. They set a “positive” rating and a $423.00 target price for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Woodward in a research report on Monday, April 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Woodward presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $393.00.

Woodward Trading Up 1.5%

Shares of WWD opened at $350.03 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $20.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.92, a PEG ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.73. Woodward, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $227.00 and a fifty-two week high of $407.00. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $367.41 and a 200-day moving average price of $346.08.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The technology company reported $2.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $1.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.01 billion. Woodward had a net margin of 12.85% and a return on equity of 20.12%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 23.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.69 EPS. Woodward has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.150-9.450 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Woodward, Inc. will post 9.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Woodward Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. Woodward’s payout ratio is presently 15.33%.

Woodward 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.