Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Lowers Position in Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans reduced its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) by 5.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,695,176 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 151,152 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation were worth $169,311,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WAL. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC increased its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 20.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 6,166 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $406,000 after purchasing an additional 1,027 shares during the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 4th quarter valued at $988,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 4th quarter valued at $67,758,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 100,011 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,580,000 after purchasing an additional 6,459 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aigen Investment Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 4th quarter valued at $497,000. 79.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WAL opened at $87.69 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $78.38 and its 200 day moving average is $66.96. The stock has a market cap of $9.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.44. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 1-year low of $38.81 and a 1-year high of $88.92.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.71 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $771.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $737.97 million. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a return on equity of 13.98% and a net margin of 15.54%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 15.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.96 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 7.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were given a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.69%. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.57%.

Insider Transactions at Western Alliance Bancorporation

In other news, CAO J. Kelly Jr. Ardrey sold 2,116 shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.95, for a total value of $160,710.20. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,520 shares in the company, valued at approximately $267,344. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, CAO J. Kelly Jr. Ardrey sold 2,116 shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.95, for a total transaction of $160,710.20. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,520 shares in the company, valued at $267,344. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Barbara Kennedy sold 11,083 shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.59, for a total value of $904,261.97. Following the sale, the insider now owns 7,977 shares in the company, valued at $650,843.43. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 21,265 shares of company stock worth $1,700,391. 2.75% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $76.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Barclays increased their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $86.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $78.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $68.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Truist Financial raised their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $88.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $85.07.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Company Profile

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.