Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Takes Position in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD)

Key Points

• Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH has acquired 7,879 shares of Woodward, Inc., valued at approximately $1.4 million, marking a significant investment during the first quarter.
• Insider transactions revealed that Terence J. Voskuil, EVP, sold 10,000 shares worth over $2.3 million, while CEO Charles P. Blankenship sold 2,450 shares valued at approximately $565,000.
• Analysts have increased their price targets for Woodward, with UBS Group raising its objective from $283 to $299 and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" among analysts.

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 7,879 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $1,438,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Focus Partners Wealth bought a new stake in Woodward during the fourth quarter valued at about $294,000. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Woodward by 1.1% during the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 7,649 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,396,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Woodward by 13.3% during the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 3,580 shares of the technology company's stock worth $653,000 after acquiring an additional 420 shares during the last quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund purchased a new stake in shares of Woodward during the first quarter worth about $733,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Woodward by 142.5% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,588 shares of the technology company's stock worth $472,000 after acquiring an additional 1,521 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.18% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WWD shares. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $245.00 price target (up previously from $225.00) on shares of Woodward in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. UBS Group lifted their target price on Woodward from $283.00 to $299.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Woodward from $175.00 to $193.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Woodward from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $291.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their target price on Woodward from $267.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $242.13.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Randall Hobbs sold 846 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 48,981 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,245,250. This trade represents a 1.70% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Charles P. Blankenship sold 2,450 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.85, for a total value of $565,582.50. Following the completion of the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 39,296 shares of company stock valued at $8,711,033. 0.82% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Woodward Stock Performance

Woodward stock traded up $2.21 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $259.29. 760,614 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 568,367. Woodward, Inc. has a twelve month low of $145.98 and a twelve month high of $267.45. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $242.92 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $205.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 2.04. The firm has a market cap of $15.39 billion, a PE ratio of 41.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.30.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 28th. The technology company reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.14. Woodward had a return on equity of 16.57% and a net margin of 11.32%. The company had revenue of $915.45 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $884.98 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.63 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Woodward, Inc. will post 6.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Woodward Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 21st will be given a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 21st. Woodward's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.