Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) have been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and ten have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $94.00.

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. DA Davidson dropped their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $93.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $86.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Weiss Ratings upgraded Western Alliance Bancorporation from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $93.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th.

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 dated Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.00, for a total transaction of $481,626.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 3,485 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $282,285. The trade was a 63.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 2.76% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Western Alliance Bancorporation

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in WAL. Clearstead Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 144.6% during the fourth quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 411 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the period. Community Bank N.A. acquired a new stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Assetmark Inc. raised its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 86.0% during the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 560 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 259 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Leonteq Securities AG bought a new stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 4th quarter valued at $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.15% of the company’s stock.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WAL opened at $80.50 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $8.79 billion, a PE ratio of 9.37, a P/E/G ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.34. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a fifty-two week low of $65.82 and a fifty-two week high of $97.23. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $79.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $81.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.74. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a net margin of 17.03% and a return on equity of 13.58%. The firm had revenue of $968.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $944.18 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.79 earnings per share. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s revenue was up 31.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.49 EPS for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed 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 dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 14th. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.56%.

About Western Alliance Bancorporation

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.