Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Monday morning.

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on WWD. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $160.00 price target (down from $186.00) on shares of Woodward in a report on Friday, October 4th. UBS Group upped their price target on Woodward from $209.00 to $228.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on Woodward from $158.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $226.00 price objective (up previously from $187.00) on shares of Woodward in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $184.67.

Woodward Stock Performance

Shares of Woodward stock opened at $178.35 on Monday. Woodward has a one year low of $131.12 and a one year high of $201.64. The company has a market cap of $10.55 billion, a PE ratio of 29.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.89. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $169.35 and a 200-day simple moving average of $170.98.

Woodward Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Woodward’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.64%.

Insider Transactions at Woodward

In other news, COO Thomas G. Cromwell sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.65, for a total transaction of $1,776,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 11,511 shares in the company, valued at $2,044,929.15. This represents a 46.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders sold 27,913 shares of company stock worth $4,907,304 over the last 90 days. 1.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Woodward

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of WWD. True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Woodward during the third quarter worth approximately $28,000. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Woodward during the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Woodward during the second quarter worth approximately $37,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Woodward during the third quarter worth approximately $41,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in shares of Woodward by 101.6% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 246 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.18% of the company’s stock.

Woodward Company Profile

Woodward, Inc designs, manufactures, and services control solutions for the aerospace and industrial markets worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Aerospace and Industrial. The Aerospace segment provides fuel pumps, metering units, actuators, air valves, specialty valves, fuel nozzles, and thrust reverser actuation systems for turbine engines and nacelles, and flight deck controls, actuators, servocontrols, motors, and sensors for aircraft.