Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE:WD) Shares Purchased by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE:WD - Free Report) by 2.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 160,069 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 3,805 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.47% of Walker & Dunlop worth $13,663,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. First Horizon Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Walker & Dunlop in the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Walker & Dunlop by 456.4% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 306 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 251 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in Walker & Dunlop by 90.5% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 383 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 182 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Walker & Dunlop by 122.0% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 444 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 244 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Walker & Dunlop by 26.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 764 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $65,000 after buying an additional 158 shares during the period. 80.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walker & Dunlop Trading Up 1.4%

NYSE:WD traded up $1.00 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $74.40. The stock had a trading volume of 218,128 shares, compared to its average volume of 211,978. Walker & Dunlop, Inc. has a 1-year low of $64.48 and a 1-year high of $118.19. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $70.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $80.48. The company has a market cap of $2.53 billion, a PE ratio of 25.48 and a beta of 1.54.

Walker & Dunlop (NYSE:WD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.98 by ($0.13). Walker & Dunlop had a return on equity of 8.99% and a net margin of 8.68%. The company had revenue of $237.37 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $260.43 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.35 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Walker & Dunlop, Inc. will post 4.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walker & Dunlop Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th were given a dividend of $0.67 per share. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.60%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 15th. Walker & Dunlop's payout ratio is currently 91.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Walker & Dunlop from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on shares of Walker & Dunlop from $105.00 to $95.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th.

Walker & Dunlop Company Profile

Walker & Dunlop, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the provision of commercial real estate and finance services. It operates through the following segments: Capital Markets, Servicing and Asset Management, and Corporate. The Capital Markets segment offers a comprehensive range of commercial real estate finance products to customers.