Graybill Wealth Management LTD. Takes $4.95 Million Position in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD)

Graybill Wealth Management LTD. bought a new stake in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 27,142 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $4,953,000. Woodward comprises 1.7% of Graybill Wealth Management LTD.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. CWM LLC grew its position in shares of Woodward by 1.1% in the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 17,389 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $3,173,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. Berbice Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Woodward by 50.0% in the first quarter. Berbice Capital Management LLC now owns 300 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Xponance Inc. grew its position in Woodward by 1.2% during the first quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 6,830 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,246,000 after buying an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System grew its position in Woodward by 0.7% during the first quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 14,210 shares of the technology company's stock worth $2,593,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC grew its position in Woodward by 12.8% during the first quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 12,153 shares of the technology company's stock worth $2,218,000 after buying an additional 1,381 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.18% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Woodward

In other Woodward news, EVP Randall Hobbs sold 846 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total transaction of $211,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 48,981 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,245,250. This trade represents a 1.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Charles P. Blankenship sold 2,450 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 4th. The stock was 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 approximately $14,944,998.15. The trade was a 3.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 42,096 shares of company stock worth $9,247,289 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.82% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Woodward from $175.00 to $193.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. UBS Group increased their price target on Woodward from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Wall Street Zen raised Woodward from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Truist Financial increased their price target on Woodward from $267.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Woodward from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $291.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Woodward presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $232.25.

Woodward Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of WWD opened at $245.14 on Monday. Woodward, Inc. has a 52 week low of $145.98 and a 52 week high of $255.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.60, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.95. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $227.06 and a 200-day moving average of $197.23.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The technology company reported $1.69 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $883.63 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $838.61 million. Woodward had a return on equity of 16.86% and a net margin of 11.36%. Woodward's revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.62 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Woodward, Inc. will post 6.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Woodward Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd were issued a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.46%. Woodward's payout ratio is 18.09%.

Woodward Company Profile

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.

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