Aigen Investment Management LP Takes Position in Woodward, Inc. $WWD

Key Points

• Aigen Investment Management initiated a new position in Woodward, buying 2,827 shares in the fourth quarter, valued at about $855,000.
• Several major institutional investors increased their stakes in the company, and 81.18% of Woodward’s stock is now held by institutions and hedge funds.
• Wall Street remains constructive on Woodward, with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $393; the stock also beat quarterly EPS and revenue estimates in its latest earnings report.

Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 2,827 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $855,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Woodward by 3.5% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,388,758 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $603,663,000 after acquiring an additional 80,538 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Woodward by 7.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,491,870 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $451,093,000 after acquiring an additional 106,390 shares in the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Woodward by 0.6% during the third quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,403,551 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $354,691,000 after acquiring an additional 8,307 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in Woodward by 122.0% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 905,578 shares of the technology company's stock worth $228,849,000 after purchasing an additional 497,722 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in Woodward by 2.2% in the third quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 887,938 shares of the technology company's stock worth $224,391,000 after purchasing an additional 18,821 shares in the last quarter. 81.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WWD has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Woodward in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $440.00 price target for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $470.00 price target on shares of Woodward in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada initiated coverage on Woodward in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $450.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Woodward in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Susquehanna initiated coverage on Woodward in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. They issued a "positive" rating and a $423.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Woodward has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $393.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Karrie M. Bem sold 185 shares of Woodward stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.00, for a total transaction of $65,675.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 3,648 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,295,040. The trade was a 4.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Daniel G. Korte sold 14,700 shares of Woodward stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.05, for a total value of $5,233,935.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 4,434 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,578,725.70. This trade represents a 76.83% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 15,629 shares of company stock worth $5,570,005. Corporate insiders own 0.71% of the company's stock.

Woodward Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WWD opened at $386.85 on Monday. Woodward, Inc. has a 12-month low of $230.68 and a 12-month high of $407.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.19. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $368.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $351.58.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The technology company reported $2.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.17. Woodward had a return on equity of 20.12% and a net margin of 12.85%.The business had revenue of $1.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.01 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.69 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 23.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Woodward has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.150-9.450 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Woodward, Inc. will post 9.34 EPS for the current year.

Woodward Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 21st were issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 21st. Woodward's payout ratio is 15.33%.

Woodward Company Profile

Woodward, Inc NASDAQ: WWD is a global leader in the design, manufacture and service of control systems and components for the aerospace and industrial markets. Founded in 1870 and headquartered in Fort Collins, Colorado, the company specializes in motion control, fuel systems, actuation, and digital control solutions. Its offerings enable precision management of flow, pressure and motion in critical applications ranging from aircraft engines and power turbines to hydraulic systems.

Woodward's product portfolio is organized into two primary segments: Aerospace and Industrial.

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