Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Western Alliance Bancorporation from “sell” to “hold.” Analysts overall maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus, with an average price target of $92.44.
• The bank beat quarterly expectations, reporting earnings of $2.45 per share versus $2.43 expected and revenue of $1.01 billion versus about $988 million expected; revenue rose 8.1% year over year.
• WAL traded at $74.77, within its 52-week range of $65.82 to $97.23. Institutional investors own 79.15% of its shares.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued on Sunday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. UBS Group lifted their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. DA Davidson set a $107.00 target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research report on Tuesday, October 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $92.00 to $90.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $90.00 to $85.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 5th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 3rd. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Western Alliance Bancorporation has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $92.44.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Price Performance

NYSE:WAL traded up $0.38 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $74.77. 496,888 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,013,842. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $76.56 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $79.37. The firm has a market cap of $8.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.26, a P/E/G ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 52 week low of $65.82 and a 52 week high of $97.23.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, October 19th. The financial services provider reported $2.45 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.43 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $987.91 million. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a return on equity of 13.50% and a net margin of 17.34%. The firm's revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.28 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Western Alliance Bancorporation

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Marshall Wace LLP increased its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 3,831.9% during the 3rd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 530,525 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $39,842,000 after purchasing an additional 517,032 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $587,000. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 192.2% in the third quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 5,289 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $397,000 after buying an additional 3,479 shares during the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 8.3% in the third quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 25,252 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,896,000 after buying an additional 1,941 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 100.1% during the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 583,866 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $43,848,000 after buying an additional 292,105 shares during the period. 79.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Company Profile

Western Alliance Bancorporation is a bank holding company headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, and the parent of Western Alliance Bank. The company provides commercial banking and related financial services to businesses, business owners and individuals. Its services include business and commercial real estate lending, deposit accounts, treasury management, and specialized banking for industries such as technology, healthcare, and property management. Through its banking divisions and specialized business lines, Western Alliance serves clients across the western United States and beyond.

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