South Dakota Investment Council Buys 8,000 Shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL)

South Dakota Investment Council grew its stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) by 10.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 83,864 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,000 shares during the quarter. South Dakota Investment Council owned about 0.08% of Western Alliance Bancorporation worth $7,006,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 70.1% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 330 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 13.4% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,325 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $111,000 after acquiring an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 16,263 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,359,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 3,387 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $283,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 58.4% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 507 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. 79.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Down 2.9 %

Shares of WAL opened at $87.10 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $86.80 and its 200 day moving average is $85.78. The company has a market capitalization of $9.59 billion, a PE ratio of 12.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.46. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 12-month low of $53.75 and a 12-month 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.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.92 by $0.03. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a return on equity of 13.14% and a net margin of 15.49%. Research analysts expect that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $0.38 dividend. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s payout ratio is 21.41%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WAL has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $103.00 price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. DA Davidson reduced their price objective on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $110.00 to $106.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $102.00 to $95.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $115.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on Western Alliance Bancorporation in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $115.00 price objective for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $98.07.

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.