Western Alliance Bancorporation $WAL Shares Bought by FJ Capital Management LLC

FJ Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) by 146.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 432,672 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 257,283 shares during the quarter. Western Alliance Bancorporation makes up approximately 4.1% of FJ Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest position. FJ Capital Management LLC owned 0.39% of Western Alliance Bancorporation worth $36,375,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in WAL. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC grew its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 36.5% during the third quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 5,979,916 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $518,578,000 after buying an additional 1,599,537 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the fourth quarter worth about $125,482,000. M&T Bank Corp grew its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 7,920.9% during the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 315,624 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,535,000 after buying an additional 311,689 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 35.8% during the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,179,518 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $102,288,000 after buying an additional 310,826 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 750.8% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 287,403 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,019,000 after buying an additional 253,622 shares in the last quarter. 79.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Performance

Shares of WAL opened at $83.47 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $78.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $81.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. The company has a market capitalization of $9.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.34. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 52-week low of $65.82 and a 52-week high of $97.23.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.74. The firm had revenue of $968.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $944.18 million. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a return on equity of 13.58% and a net margin of 17.03%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 31.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.79 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 14th were issued a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 14th. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio is 19.56%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Western Alliance Bancorporation news, CAO Ben Mucha sold 5,946 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.00, for a total value of $481,626.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 3,485 shares in the company, valued at approximately $282,285. The trade was a 63.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 2.68% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WAL has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. TD Cowen downgraded Western Alliance Bancorporation from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $83.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Weiss Ratings raised Western Alliance Bancorporation from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Western Alliance Bancorporation from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $83.00 to $79.00 in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $94.00 to $92.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 27th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $92.93.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Profile

Western Alliance Bancorporation is a bank holding company headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona. Through its principal subsidiary, Western Alliance Bank, the company provides a range of banking services to commercial clients, entrepreneurs and real estate developers. As one of the largest regional banks in the western United States, it focuses on relationship-driven banking solutions tailored to niche industries and growing businesses.

The company’s core offerings include deposit products, treasury management and a variety of lending services.