Denali Advisors LLC Takes $897,000 Position in Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC)

Denali Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 17,708 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $897,000. Denali Advisors LLC owned 0.07% of Westamerica Bancorporation as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. MQS Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation in the first quarter valued at about $294,000. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 70.2% in the 1st quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 9,627 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $487,000 after purchasing an additional 3,972 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in Westamerica Bancorporation by 13.0% in the 1st quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 4,426 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $214,000 after buying an additional 510 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 8,325 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $421,000 after acquiring an additional 362 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Westamerica Bancorporation by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 150,220 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,606,000 after purchasing an additional 5,356 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.89% of the company's stock.

Westamerica Bancorporation Stock Performance

Shares of WABC traded up $0.25 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $49.83. 27,188 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 136,220. The business's 50-day moving average price is $49.04 and its 200 day moving average price is $49.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.30. Westamerica Bancorporation has a twelve month low of $42.00 and a twelve month high of $59.97. The company has a market capitalization of $1.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.42 and a beta of 0.64.

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.01. Westamerica Bancorporation had a return on equity of 13.81% and a net margin of 43.69%. The company had revenue of $64.88 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $65.80 million. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Westamerica Bancorporation will post 4.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Westamerica Bancorporation Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Monday, May 5th were paid a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 5th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.69%. This is a positive change from Westamerica Bancorporation's previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. Westamerica Bancorporation's dividend payout ratio is presently 38.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Robert James Baker, Jr. sold 710 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.16, for a total value of $34,193.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP John A. Thorson sold 2,243 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.57, for a total value of $108,942.51. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 11,591 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $562,974.87. This represents a 16.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 5.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WABC shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Westamerica Bancorporation from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Westamerica Bancorporation from $54.00 to $50.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Westamerica Bancorporation from $55.00 to $54.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday.

Westamerica Bancorporation Company Profile

Westamerica Bancorporation operates as a bank holding company for the Westamerica Bank that provides various banking products and services to individual and commercial customers. The company accepts various deposit products, including retail savings and checking accounts, as well as certificates of deposit.