Public Sector Pension Investment Board Acquires 18,219 Shares of Westamerica Bancorporation $WABC

Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its holdings in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC - Free Report) by 27.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 84,697 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 18,219 shares during the quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board owned approximately 0.32% of Westamerica Bancorporation worth $4,288,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Westamerica Bancorporation during the first quarter worth $17,023,000. Entropy Technologies LP bought a new stake in Westamerica Bancorporation during the first quarter worth $232,000. IFG Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in Westamerica Bancorporation by 4.9% during the first quarter. IFG Advisory LLC now owns 46,444 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,351,000 after acquiring an additional 2,172 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE lifted its holdings in Westamerica Bancorporation by 19.9% during the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 4,698 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $238,000 after acquiring an additional 780 shares during the period. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd bought a new stake in Westamerica Bancorporation during the first quarter worth $1,654,000. 81.89% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Westamerica Bancorporation Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WABC traded down $0.3370 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $48.6230. The company had a trading volume of 47,511 shares, compared to its average volume of 151,469. Westamerica Bancorporation has a 1 year low of $42.00 and a 1 year high of $59.97. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $48.98 and its 200-day moving average price is $49.05. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The company has a market capitalization of $1.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.19 and a beta of 0.63.

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.12 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.01. Westamerica Bancorporation had a return on equity of 13.81% and a net margin of 43.69%.The business had revenue of $64.88 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $65.80 million. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Westamerica Bancorporation will post 4.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Westamerica Bancorporation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 4th were paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 4th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. Westamerica Bancorporation's payout ratio is 38.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on WABC shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Westamerica Bancorporation from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Westamerica Bancorporation from $55.00 to $54.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $52.00.

About Westamerica Bancorporation

Westamerica Bancorporation operates as a bank holding company for the Westamerica Bank that provides various banking products and services to individual and commercial customers. The company accepts various deposit products, including retail savings and checking accounts, as well as certificates of deposit.