Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) Shares Sold by LPL Financial LLC

Key Points

• LPL Financial LLC reduced its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 8.2%, selling 11,987 shares to hold 134,316 shares worth approximately $10.3 million.
• Western Alliance's stock has been subject to various analyst ratings, with Piper Sandler raising their price target from $94.00 to $105.00 while several others adjusted targets lower.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.38, reflecting a 1.9% dividend yield, with a recorded payout ratio of 19.97%.

LPL Financial LLC cut its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Free Report) by 8.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 134,316 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 11,987 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned 0.12% of Western Alliance Bancorporation worth $10,319,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Tsfg LLC acquired a new position in Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $33,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 91.5% in the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,009 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $78,000 after buying an additional 482 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 144.5% during the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,714 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $132,000 after buying an additional 1,013 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 53.3% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,181 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $168,000 after buying an additional 758 shares during the last quarter. 79.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WAL has been the topic of several analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $105.00 to $85.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Barclays increased their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $80.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $94.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Western Alliance Bancorporation has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $96.62.

Insider Transactions at Western Alliance Bancorporation

In other Western Alliance Bancorporation news, insider Tim R. Bruckner sold 2,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.91, for a total transaction of $209,775.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 24,759 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,077,527.69. The trade was a 9.17% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 2.75% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WAL traded up $1.18 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $83.88. 274,657 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,112,724. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.82. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 12 month low of $57.05 and a 12 month high of $98.10. The company has a 50 day moving average of $78.75 and a 200-day moving average of $77.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 1.33.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $2.07 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $836.21 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $838.58 million. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a net margin of 16.39% and a return on equity of 12.62%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.75 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.05 EPS for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 14th. Western Alliance Bancorporation's payout ratio is presently 19.97%.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Company Profile

Western Alliance Bancorporation operates as the bank holding company for Western Alliance Bank that provides various banking products and related services primarily in Arizona, California, and Nevada. It operates through Commercial and Consumer Related segments. The company offers deposit products, including checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as fixed-rate and fixed maturity certificates of deposit accounts; demand deposits; and treasury management and residential mortgage products and services.