Comerica Bank Sells 26,860 Shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation $WAL

Key Points

• Comerica Bank reduced its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 43.9%, now owning 34,269 shares valued at $2.63 million following the sale of 26,860 shares.
• Several institutional investors have adjusted their stakes, with Ameriprise Financial increasing its position by 33.8% to hold 475,935 shares worth $36.56 million.
• Western Alliance Bancorporation reported earnings of $2.07 per share, surpassing consensus estimates, while announcing a quarterly dividend of $0.38 per share, yielding 1.7%.

Comerica Bank cut its stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Free Report) by 43.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 34,269 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 26,860 shares during the period. Comerica Bank's holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation were worth $2,633,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC increased its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 6.9% during the first quarter. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC now owns 51,086 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,925,000 after buying an additional 3,277 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC increased its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 34.7% during the first quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 2,238 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $172,000 after buying an additional 577 shares during the period. Kestra Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 2.6% during the first quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 14,070 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,081,000 after buying an additional 360 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 33.8% during the first quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 475,935 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $36,562,000 after buying an additional 120,105 shares during the period. Finally, CW Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 27.3% during the first quarter. CW Advisors LLC now owns 38,734 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,976,000 after buying an additional 8,297 shares during the period. 79.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:WAL traded down $0.53 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $89.02. 810,673 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 917,160. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.70, a P/E/G ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 1.39. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 52-week low of $57.05 and a 52-week high of $98.10. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The business's fifty day moving average is $82.54 and its 200-day moving average is $77.27.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $2.07 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $836.21 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $838.58 million. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a return on equity of 12.62% and a net margin of 16.39%.During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.75 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.05 EPS for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 14th were paid a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 14th. Western Alliance Bancorporation's dividend payout ratio is 19.97%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WAL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Industrial Alliance Securities set a $104.00 price objective on Western Alliance Bancorporation in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 21st. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $90.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $94.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Western Alliance Bancorporation presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $97.79.

Insider Buying and Selling at Western Alliance Bancorporation

In related news, insider Tim R. Bruckner sold 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.91, for a total transaction of $209,775.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 24,759 shares in the company, valued at $2,077,527.69. This represents a 9.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 2.75% of the company's stock.

About Western Alliance Bancorporation

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.