Tribune Investment Group LP Buys New Holdings in Woodward, Inc. $WWD

Key Points

• Tribune Investment Group LP has invested approximately $8.58 million in Woodward, acquiring 47,000 shares, making it the fund's 8th largest holding.
• Multiple institutional investors, including MassMutual and Mitsubishi UFJ, have significantly increased their stakes in Woodward during the first quarter, collectively owning over 81% of the company.
• Woodward's recent quarterly earnings exceeded expectations with a reported EPS of $1.76, along with a forecast for FY 2025 EPS in the range of 6.500-6.750.

Tribune Investment Group LP acquired a new stake in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 47,000 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $8,577,000. Woodward accounts for 3.7% of Tribune Investment Group LP's holdings, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. Tribune Investment Group LP owned 0.08% of Woodward at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Farallon Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Woodward by 31.8% in the fourth quarter. Farallon Capital Management LLC now owns 1,521,300 shares of the technology company's stock worth $253,175,000 after acquiring an additional 367,300 shares during the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC increased its position in Woodward by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,418,123 shares of the technology company's stock worth $236,004,000 after purchasing an additional 38,774 shares during the last quarter. Naya Capital Management UK Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Woodward by 130.2% during the 4th quarter. Naya Capital Management UK Ltd. now owns 1,328,765 shares of the technology company's stock worth $221,133,000 after purchasing an additional 751,541 shares in the last quarter. Duquesne Family Office LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Woodward by 15.9% during the 4th quarter. Duquesne Family Office LLC now owns 1,225,750 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $203,989,000 after buying an additional 168,035 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Woodward by 5.0% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,092,257 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $199,326,000 after buying an additional 51,873 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.18% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Woodward

In other Woodward news, EVP Terence J. Voskuil sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.03, for a total value of $2,310,300.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 4,945 shares in the company, valued at $1,142,443.35. This trade represents a 66.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Charles P. Blankenship sold 2,450 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.85, for a total transaction of $565,582.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 64,739 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,944,998.15. This represents a 3.65% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 24,296 shares of company stock worth $5,544,333. Insiders own 0.82% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on WWD. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $245.00 price target (up previously from $225.00) on shares of Woodward in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Woodward from $175.00 to $193.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Alembic Global Advisors upgraded shares of Woodward from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $281.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. Northcoast Research raised shares of Woodward to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Woodward from $267.00 to $294.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $253.11.

Woodward Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WWD traded up $6.64 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $252.64. 199,290 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 519,042. Woodward, Inc. has a one year low of $146.82 and a one year high of $267.45. The company's 50 day moving average is $249.95 and its 200 day moving average is $212.40. 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 capitalization of $15.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 1.30.

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

Woodward Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be given a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. Woodward's dividend payout ratio is currently 17.72%.

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.