Senator Investment Group LP Makes New Investment in Woodward, Inc. $WWD

Key Points

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Senator Investment Group LP acquired a new stake in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 122,500 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $22,355,000. Senator Investment Group LP owned about 0.21% of Woodward as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its position in shares of Woodward by 191.2% in the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 166 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. lifted its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC lifted its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Berbice Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Woodward by 50.0% during the 1st quarter. Berbice Capital Management LLC now owns 300 shares of the technology company's stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. 81.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Woodward from $229.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Northcoast Research raised Woodward to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Woodward from $175.00 to $193.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Wall Street Zen raised Woodward from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $245.00 price objective (up previously from $225.00) on shares of Woodward in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $253.11.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Terence J. Voskuil sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.03, for a total transaction of $2,310,300.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 4,945 shares in the company, valued at $1,142,443.35. The trade was a 66.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Randall Hobbs sold 846 shares of the business'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 sale, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 29,296 shares of company stock worth $6,611,283 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.82% of the company's stock.

Woodward Price Performance

Woodward stock traded up $0.20 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $248.04. 382,045 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 578,175. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $249.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $212.05. Woodward, Inc. has a 12 month low of $146.82 and a 12 month high of $267.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 2.04 and a quick ratio of 1.39. The firm has a market cap of $14.87 billion, a PE ratio of 39.25, a PEG ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 1.30.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The technology company reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $915.45 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $884.98 million. Woodward had a return on equity of 16.57% and a net margin of 11.32%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.63 EPS. Woodward has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.500-6.750 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Woodward, Inc. will post 6.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Woodward Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 21st will be given a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Woodward's payout ratio is currently 17.72%.

Woodward 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.