Independent Financial Group LLC Makes New $924,000 Investment in Western Alliance Bancorporation $WAL

Key Points

• Independent Financial Group LLC opened a new position in Western Alliance Bancorporation during the first quarter, buying 13,045 shares valued at about $924,000.
• Western Alliance attracted continued interest from other institutional investors, and roughly 79.15% of the stock is owned by institutions and hedge funds.
• The bank recently beat quarterly expectations with $2.22 EPS versus the $1.48 estimate, while analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $94.

Independent Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 13,045 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $924,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 6,008 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $505,000 after purchasing an additional 113 shares in the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 3,030 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $255,000 after buying an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,342 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $237,000 after buying an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Truist Financial Corp increased its stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 3,102 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $261,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the period. Finally, Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 39.3% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 557 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 157 shares during the period. 79.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $93.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $90.00 to $88.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. DA Davidson lowered their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $93.00 to $90.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Western Alliance Bancorporation currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $94.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Western Alliance Bancorporation

In other news, CAO Ben Mucha sold 5,946 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.00, for a total value of $481,626.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 3,485 shares in the company, valued at $282,285. This represents a 63.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 2.76% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Down 1.5%

Shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation stock opened at $81.03 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $8.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The business has a 50-day moving average of $80.03 and a two-hundred day moving average of $81.25. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 1 year low of $65.82 and a 1 year high of $97.23.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.74. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a return on equity of 13.58% and a net margin of 17.03%.The business had revenue of $968.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $944.18 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.79 EPS. Western Alliance Bancorporation's revenue for the quarter was up 31.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.5 EPS for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 14th were paid a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 14th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. Western Alliance Bancorporation's payout ratio is presently 19.56%.

About Western Alliance Bancorporation

Western Alliance Bancorporation is a bank holding company headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona. Through its principal subsidiary, Western Alliance Bank, the company provides a range of banking services to commercial clients, entrepreneurs and real estate developers. As one of the largest regional banks in the western United States, it focuses on relationship-driven banking solutions tailored to niche industries and growing businesses.

The company's core offerings include deposit products, treasury management and a variety of lending services.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.