Woodward, Inc. $WWD Stock Holdings Reduced by Alpha Wave Global LP

Key Points

• Alpha Wave Global LP has reduced its stake in Woodward, Inc. by 33.9%, selling 35,865 shares, and now holds approximately 69,861 shares worth around $12.7 million.
• Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 81.18% of Woodward's stock, indicating strong interest from the investment community.
• Woodward recently reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, surpassing analyst estimates by $0.14, alongside a revenue growth of 8.0% year-over-year.

Alpha Wave Global LP lowered its position in shares of Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD - Free Report) by 33.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 69,861 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 35,865 shares during the period. Woodward accounts for approximately 5.7% of Alpha Wave Global LP's portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Alpha Wave Global LP owned 0.12% of Woodward worth $12,749,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of WWD. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its stake in shares of Woodward by 191.2% during the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 166 shares of the technology company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its stake in shares of Woodward by 2,314.3% during the first quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 169 shares of the technology company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Woodward by 189.8% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 171 shares of the technology company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC grew its stake in shares of Woodward by 116.7% during the first quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 182 shares of the technology company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Virtus Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of Woodward during the first quarter worth $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.18% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on WWD shares. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Woodward from $283.00 to $299.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Woodward from $267.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Woodward from $229.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Alembic Global Advisors upgraded shares of Woodward from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $281.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $245.00 price target (up from $225.00) on shares of Woodward in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $253.11.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Charles P. Blankenship sold 2,450 shares of Woodward stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.85, for a total value of $565,582.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 64,739 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,944,998.15. The trade was a 3.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Terence J. Voskuil sold 10,000 shares of Woodward stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.03, for a total transaction of $2,310,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 4,945 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,142,443.35. The trade was a 66.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 19,296 shares of company stock valued at $4,464,433 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.82% of the company's stock.

Woodward Stock Performance

Woodward stock traded down $0.34 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $249.30. 392,766 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 496,244. Woodward, Inc. has a 12-month low of $146.82 and a 12-month high of $267.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 2.04. The stock has a market cap of $14.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 1.30. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $250.68 and its 200 day simple moving average is $213.32.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 28th. The technology company reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.14. Woodward had a net margin of 11.32% and a return on equity of 16.57%. The company had revenue of $915.45 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $884.98 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.63 EPS. Woodward's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. Woodward has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.500-6.750 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Woodward, Inc. will post 6.15 EPS for the current year.

Woodward Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be issued a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Woodward's payout ratio is presently 17.72%.

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.