Pacific Capital Partners Ltd Sells 25,000 Shares of Woodward, Inc. $WWD

Key Points

• Pacific Capital Partners Ltd has reduced its stake in Woodward, Inc. by 76.9%, dropping from 32,500 shares to only 7,500 shares, now representing 1.7% of its portfolio.
• Several hedge funds significantly increased their holdings in Woodward recently, with GAMMA Investing LLC growing its position by a staggering 44,162.8% in the first quarter.
• Equities analysts have mixed ratings on Woodward, with Zacks Research downgrading it from a "strong-buy" to a "hold," while Deutsche Bank upgraded it to a "buy" with a price target of $291.00.

Pacific Capital Partners Ltd lowered its position in shares of Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD - Free Report) by 76.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,500 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 25,000 shares during the quarter. Woodward accounts for 1.7% of Pacific Capital Partners Ltd's holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Pacific Capital Partners Ltd's holdings in Woodward were worth $1,838,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its position in Woodward by 191.2% during the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 166 shares of the technology company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. boosted its position in Woodward by 2,314.3% during the 1st quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 169 shares of the technology company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in 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 acquiring an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC boosted its position in Woodward by 116.7% during the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 182 shares of the technology company's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Virtus Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Woodward during the 1st quarter worth approximately $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.18% of the company's stock.

Woodward Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:WWD traded down $2.59 during trading on Friday, reaching $237.39. 148,096 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 520,669. 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, Inc. has a 1-year low of $146.82 and a 1-year high of $267.45. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $249.09 and a two-hundred day moving average of $218.92. The firm has a market cap of $14.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.27.

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

Woodward Announces Dividend

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 yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 20th. Woodward's dividend payout ratio is 17.72%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Woodward from $229.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Alembic Global Advisors upgraded Woodward from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $281.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $245.00 price target (up previously from $225.00) on shares of Woodward in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Truist Financial raised their price target on Woodward from $267.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on Woodward from $283.00 to $299.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Woodward presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $253.11.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Woodward news, EVP Randall Hobbs sold 846 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $211,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 48,981 shares in the company, valued at $12,245,250. This represents a 1.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director John D. Cohn sold 1,750 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $244.32, for a total value of $427,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 20,963 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,121,680.16. This trade represents a 7.70% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.82% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.