GAMMA Investing LLC Has $5.53 Million Stock Holdings in Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC)

GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC - Free Report) by 4,946.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 109,310 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 107,144 shares during the quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC owned about 0.41% of Westamerica Bancorporation worth $5,534,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. WINTON GROUP Ltd raised its position in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd now owns 21,619 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,134,000 after acquiring an additional 227 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank boosted its stake in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 52,500 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,754,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 14,619 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $767,000 after buying an additional 510 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 815.6% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 824 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 734 shares during the period. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 15,607 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $819,000 after buying an additional 856 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.89% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WABC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on shares of Westamerica Bancorporation from $54.00 to $50.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Wall Street Zen raised Westamerica Bancorporation from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on Westamerica Bancorporation from $58.00 to $55.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 21st.

Insider Buying and Selling at Westamerica Bancorporation

In other news, SVP John A. Thorson sold 2,243 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.57, for a total transaction of $108,942.51. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,591 shares in the company, valued at $562,974.87. This represents a 16.21% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Robert James Baker, Jr. sold 710 shares of Westamerica Bancorporation stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.16, for a total value of $34,193.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 5.30% of the company's stock.

Westamerica Bancorporation Trading Down 1.1%

WABC stock traded down $0.55 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $47.94. 22,647 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 137,679. The company has a market cap of $1.26 billion, a PE ratio of 9.22 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a current ratio of 0.27. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $47.88 and its 200-day moving average price is $50.60. Westamerica Bancorporation has a one year low of $42.00 and a one year high of $59.97.

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.07. Westamerica Bancorporation had a net margin of 44.55% and a return on equity of 16.15%. The firm had revenue of $66.71 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $66.47 million. Research analysts predict that Westamerica Bancorporation will post 4.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Westamerica Bancorporation Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 5th were issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 5th. This is a boost from Westamerica Bancorporation's previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. Westamerica Bancorporation's dividend payout ratio is 36.87%.

Westamerica Bancorporation 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.