Aquatic Capital Management LLC Makes New $3.71 Million Investment in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD)

Aquatic Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 22,265 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $3,705,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Woodward during the fourth quarter valued at $8,439,000. Nebula Research & Development LLC bought a new position in Woodward during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,792,000. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC bought a new position in Woodward during the fourth quarter valued at about $21,967,000. Pinebridge Investments L.P. raised its holdings in Woodward by 42.7% during the fourth quarter. Pinebridge Investments L.P. now owns 20,744 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $3,452,000 after buying an additional 6,208 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dark Forest Capital Management LP bought a new position in Woodward during the fourth quarter valued at about $549,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.18% of the company's stock.

Woodward Stock Performance

WWD traded up $2.92 on Thursday, hitting $190.49. 656,938 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 466,113. The company has a current ratio of 1.89, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $178.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $177.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.31 billion, a PE ratio of 31.91, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.12. Woodward, Inc. has a 52 week low of $145.98 and a 52 week high of $201.64.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The technology company reported $1.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $883.63 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $838.61 million. Woodward had a return on equity of 16.76% and a net margin of 11.18%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.62 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Woodward, Inc. will post 6.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Woodward Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.59%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. Woodward's payout ratio is 18.76%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WWD has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded Woodward from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $187.00 price objective on Woodward and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Woodward from $175.00 to $193.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Woodward from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Woodward from $205.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Woodward has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $195.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Woodward

In other news, Director John D. Cohn sold 2,800 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.52, for a total value of $536,256.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 20,965 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,015,216.80. This trade represents a 11.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, COO Thomas G. Cromwell sold 10,000 shares of Woodward stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.50, for a total value of $1,845,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 15,477 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,855,506.50. The trade was a 39.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 30,700 shares of company stock valued at $5,751,700. 0.82% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Woodward

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.