Westamerica Bancorporation (WABC) Stock Price, News & Analysis

Company Overview

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ: WABC) is a California-based bank holding company that provides a comprehensive suite of commercial banking, trust and wealth management services. Through its primary subsidiary, Westamerica Bank, the company offers deposit products, lending solutions and treasury management to a diverse clientele that includes small and mid-sized businesses, professionals, non-profit organizations and individuals.

The company’s lending portfolio encompasses commercial real estate financing, agricultural loans, equipment financing and lines of credit designed to support working capital needs. Westamerica Bank also offers specialized services such as cash management, merchant services, online and mobile banking, as well as mortgage and construction lending. Its trust and wealth management division provides investment advisory, fiduciary administration, estate planning and retirement planning services through dedicated client teams.

Headquartered in San Rafael, California, Westamerica Bancorporation operates a network of branch offices primarily across California’s Central Coast, the Northern Coast and the Sacramento Valley. The company’s regional footprint enables it to maintain close relationships with local business owners and community institutions, ensuring tailored financial solutions and responsive service at the local level.

Founded in 1978, Westamerica Bancorporation has grown organically and through targeted acquisitions while maintaining a focus on conservative underwriting and strong credit quality. Robert A. Strohm serves as President and Chief Executive Officer, bringing extensive banking experience and a commitment to community banking principles. Under his leadership, the company continues to emphasize customer-driven growth and prudent risk management.

Key Stats

• Today's Range: $44.93 to $47.07
• 50-Day Range: $45.31 to $50.74
• 52-Week Range: $42.00 to $59.97
• Volume: 203,491 shs
• Average Volume: 152,795 shs
• Market Capitalization: $1.17 billion
• P/E Ratio: 9.58
• Dividend Yield: 4.02%
• Price Target: $52.00
• Consensus Rating: Hold

Westamerica Bancorporation Stock Analysis - MarketRank™

Westamerica Bancorporation scored higher than 71% of companies evaluated by MarketBeat, and ranked 569th out of 945 stocks in the finance sector. Scores are calculated by averaging available category scores, with extra weight given to analysis and valuation.

Analyst's Opinion

• Score: 2.5 / 5
• Analyst Rating: Hold

Consensus Rating

Westamerica Bancorporation has received a consensus rating of Hold. The company's average rating score is 2.00, and is based on no buy ratings, 3 hold ratings, and no sell ratings.

Upside Potential

Westamerica Bancorporation has a consensus price target of $52.00, representing about 13.5% upside from its current price of $45.80.

Amount of Analyst Coverage

Westamerica Bancorporation has only been the subject of 2 research reports in the past 90 days.

Earnings and Valuation

• Score: 1.3 / 5
• Proj. Earnings Growth: -9.20%

Earnings Growth

Earnings for Westamerica Bancorporation are expected to decrease by -9.20% in the coming year, from $4.35 to $3.95 per share.

Price to Earnings Ratio vs. the Market

The P/E ratio of Westamerica Bancorporation is 9.58, which means that it is trading at a less expensive P/E ratio than the market average P/E ratio of about 233.20.

Price to Earnings Ratio vs. Sector

The P/E ratio of Westamerica Bancorporation is 9.58, which means that it is trading at a less expensive P/E ratio than the Finance sector average P/E ratio of about 29.75.

Price to Book Value per Share Ratio

Westamerica Bancorporation has a P/B Ratio of 1.37. P/B Ratios below 3 indicates that a company is reasonably valued with respect to its assets and liabilities.

Short Interest

• Score: 5.0 / 5
• Short Interest Level: Healthy

Percentage of Shares Shorted

1.29% of the float of Westamerica Bancorporation has been sold short.

Short Interest Ratio / Days to Cover

Westamerica Bancorporation has a short interest ratio ("days to cover") of 2.1, which is generally considered an acceptable ratio of short interest to trading volume.

Change versus previous month

Short interest in Westamerica Bancorporation has recently decreased by 19.41%, indicating that investor sentiment is improving significantly.

Dividend

• Score: 5.0 / 5
• Dividend Strength: Strong

Dividend Leadership

Westamerica Bancorporation is a leading dividend payer. It pays a dividend yield of 3.89%, putting its dividend yield in the top 25% of dividend-paying stocks.

Dividend Growth

Westamerica Bancorporation has been increasing its dividend for 34 years.

Dividend Coverage

The dividend payout ratio of Westamerica Bancorporation is 38.49%. This payout ratio is at a healthy, sustainable level, below 75%.

Dividend Sustainability

Based on earnings estimates, Westamerica Bancorporation will have a dividend payout ratio of 46.58% next year. This indicates that Westamerica Bancorporation will be able to sustain or increase its dividend.

Sustainability and ESG

• Score: N/A
• Environmental Score: N/A

Percentage of Shares Shorted

1.29% of the float of Westamerica Bancorporation has been sold short.

Short Interest Ratio / Days to Cover

Westamerica Bancorporation has a short interest ratio ("days to cover") of 2.1, which is generally considered an acceptable ratio of short interest to trading volume.

Change versus previous month

Short interest in Westamerica Bancorporation has recently decreased by 19.41%, indicating that investor sentiment is improving significantly.

News and Social Media

• Score: 1.9 / 5
• News Sentiment: 0.47

News Sentiment

Westamerica Bancorporation has a news sentiment score of 0.47. This score is calculated as an average of sentiment of articles about the company over the last seven days and ranges from 2 (good news) to -2 (bad news). This is a lower news sentiment than the 0.77 average news sentiment score of Finance companies.

News Coverage This Week

MarketBeat has tracked 5 news articles for Westamerica Bancorporation this week, compared to 3 articles on an average week.

Company Ownership

• Score: 1.7 / 5
• Insider Trading: N/A

Insider Buying vs. Insider Selling

In the past three months, Westamerica Bancorporation insiders have not sold or bought any company stock.

Percentage Held by Insiders

Only 5.30% of the stock of Westamerica Bancorporation is held by insiders.

Percentage Held by Institutions

81.89% of the stock of Westamerica Bancorporation is held by institutions. High institutional ownership can be a signal of strong market trust in this company.

WABC Stock Analysis - Frequently Asked Questions

How have WABC shares performed this year?

Westamerica Bancorporation's stock was trading at $52.46 on January 1st, 2025. Since then, WABC shares have decreased by 12.7% and is now trading at $45.80.

How were Westamerica Bancorporation's earnings last quarter?

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October, 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.04. The financial services provider earned $64 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $64.20 million. Westamerica Bancorporation had a net margin of 43.69% and a trailing twelve-month return on equity of 13.81%.

Who are Westamerica Bancorporation's major shareholders?

Top institutional shareholders of Westamerica Bancorporation include Assenagon Asset Management S.A. (0.46%), Voya Investment Management LLC (0.14%), CWM LLC (0.08%) and Inspire Investing LLC (0.04%). Insiders that own company stock include David L Payne, John A Thorson, George S Ensinger, Robert James Baker Jr, Inez Wondeh, Michele R Hassid, Alisa Jane Belew, Martin Camsey, Robert James Baker, Jr and Curtis Belton.
View institutional ownership trends.

How do I buy shares of Westamerica Bancorporation?

Shares of WABC stock can be purchased through any online brokerage account. Popular online brokerages with access to the U.S. stock market include Charles Schwab, E*TRADE, Fidelity, and Vanguard Brokerage Services.

What other stocks do shareholders of Westamerica Bancorporation own?

Based on aggregate information from My MarketBeat watchlists, some other companies that Westamerica Bancorporation investors own include American Water Works (AWK), Humana (HUM), Waste Connections (WCN), The RMR Group (RMR), Voyager Therapeutics (VYGR), DiamondRock Hospitality (DRH) and iShares Micro-Cap ETF (IWC).

Company Calendar

• Record date for 8/15 Dividend: 8/04/2025
• Ex-Dividend for 8/15 Dividend: 8/04/2025
• Dividend Payable: 8/15/2025
• Today: 10/16/2025
• Last Earnings: 10/16/2025
• Next Earnings (Estimated): 10/16/2025
• Fiscal Year End: 12/31/2025

Industry, Sector and Symbol

• Stock Exchange: NASDAQ
• Sector: Finance
• Industry: BANKS - WEST
• Sub-Industry: Regional Banks
• Current Symbol: NASDAQ:WABC
• CIK: 311094
• Web: www.westamerica.com
• Phone: (415) 257-8000
• Fax: 415-257-8013
• Employees: 590
• Year Founded: 1884

Price Target and Rating

• Average Price Target for Westamerica Bancorporation: $52.00
• High Price Target: $54.00
• Low Price Target: $50.00
• Potential Upside/Downside: +13.5%
• Consensus Rating: Hold
• Rating Score (0-4): 2.00
• Research Coverage: 3 Analysts

Profitability

• EPS (Trailing Twelve Months): $4.78
• Trailing P/E Ratio: 9.58
• Forward P/E Ratio: 10.53
• P/E Growth: N/A
• Net Income: $138.64 million
• Net Margins: 43.69%
• Pretax Margin: 59.37%
• Return on Equity: 13.81%
• Return on Assets: 2.09%

Debt

• Debt-to-Equity Ratio: 0.11
• Current Ratio: 0.29
• Quick Ratio: 0.29

Sales & Book Value

• Annual Sales: $274.65 million
• Price / Sales: 4.25
• Cash Flow: $5.36 per share
• Price / Cash Flow: 8.55
• Book Value: $33.35 per share
• Price / Book: 1.37

Miscellaneous

• Outstanding Shares: 25,462,000
• Free Float: 24,113,000
• Market Cap: $1.17 billion
• Optionable: Optionable
• Beta: 0.61