Scotia Capital Inc. Acquires New Position in Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL)

Key Points

• Scotia Capital Inc. has invested approximately $1.40 million in Western Alliance Bancorporation by purchasing 18,260 shares, as disclosed in their recent 13F filing.
• The company will pay a quarterly dividend of $0.38 on August 29, with an annualized yield of 2.0% and a payout ratio of 19.97%.
• Western Alliance Bancorporation reported an EPS of $2.07 for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations and marking an increase from $1.75 EPS in the same quarter last year.

Scotia Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 18,260 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,403,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC grew its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 55.7% during the 4th quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 1,814,745 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $151,604,000 after acquiring an additional 648,983 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 23.5% during the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,341,553 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $195,616,000 after purchasing an additional 445,176 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can increased its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 973.1% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 421,822 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $35,239,000 after buying an additional 382,513 shares in the last quarter. Global Frontier Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in the fourth quarter worth about $23,809,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,736,263 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $479,207,000 after buying an additional 278,041 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.15% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Western Alliance Bancorporation news, insider Tim R. Bruckner sold 2,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.91, for a total transaction of $209,775.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 24,759 shares in the company, valued at $2,077,527.69. The trade was a 9.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 2.68% of the company's stock.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WAL traded up $1.03 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $79.13. 759,264 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,140,953. The company's 50-day moving average is $78.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $77.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.81. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 1 year low of $57.05 and a 1 year high of $98.10. The company has a market capitalization of $8.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.40, a PEG ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 1.33.

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

Western Alliance Bancorporation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 14th. Western Alliance Bancorporation's dividend payout ratio is presently 19.97%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on WAL. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $95.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $80.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. DA Davidson raised their price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $90.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $105.00 to $85.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Western Alliance Bancorporation has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $96.62.

Western Alliance Bancorporation 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.