LaFleur & Godfrey LLC Sells 2,606 Shares of Woodward, Inc. $WWD

Key Points

• LaFleur & Godfrey LLC reduced its stake in Woodward, Inc. by 3.6%, now holding 70,137 shares valued at about $17.19 million.
• Director John D. Cohn and EVP Randall Hobbs both sold shares recently, with Cohn selling 1,750 shares and Hobbs selling 846 shares, indicating a slight decrease in their respective positions.
• Woodward is rated as a "Moderate Buy" by analysts, with a consensus price target of $253.11, following recent rating changes from various research firms.

LaFleur & Godfrey LLC decreased its position in shares of Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD - Free Report) by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 70,137 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 2,606 shares during the period. Woodward comprises 2.1% of LaFleur & Godfrey LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest position. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC owned approximately 0.12% of Woodward worth $17,190,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WWD. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its holdings in shares of Woodward by 191.2% in the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 166 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 109 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. increased its holdings in Woodward by 2,314.3% in the first quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 169 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of Woodward by 189.8% during the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 171 shares of the technology company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares during the period. TCTC Holdings LLC grew its holdings in Woodward by 116.7% in the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 182 shares of the technology company's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Virtus Advisers LLC bought a new position in Woodward during the 1st quarter valued at $38,000. 81.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Woodward Price Performance

WWD stock traded up $2.45 during trading on Monday, reaching $240.56. 422,702 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 539,028. The company has a 50-day moving average of $248.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $220.33. The company has a market capitalization of $14.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.27. Woodward, Inc. has a twelve month low of $146.82 and a twelve month high of $267.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 2.04 and a quick ratio of 1.39.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 28th. The technology company reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.14. Woodward had a net margin of 11.32% and a return on equity of 16.57%. The business had revenue of $915.45 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $884.98 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.63 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Woodward has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.500-6.750 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Woodward, Inc. will post 6.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Woodward Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 4th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 20th will be paid a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 20th. Woodward's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 17.72%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director John D. Cohn sold 1,750 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $244.32, for a total transaction of $427,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 20,963 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,121,680.16. This trade represents a 7.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Randall Hobbs sold 846 shares of Woodward 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 48,981 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,245,250. The trade was a 1.70% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.82% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on WWD shares. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Woodward from $267.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Northcoast Research raised shares of Woodward to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Woodward from $283.00 to $299.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Woodward from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, August 15th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Woodward from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $291.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Woodward has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $253.11.

About Woodward

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.