Walker & Dunlop, Inc. $WD Shares Sold by Verdence Capital Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Verdence Capital Advisors cut its Walker & Dunlop stake by 54.9% in the third quarter, selling 76,092 shares and retaining 62,463 shares valued at approximately $2.2 million.
• Walker & Dunlop shares opened at $34.61, near the lower end of their 12-month range of $31.40 to $85.26. The company reported quarterly EPS of $1.19, beating estimates, but revenue fell 3.9% year over year to $306.7 million.
• The company’s quarterly dividend implies a 7.9% annualized yield, though its 242.86% payout ratio is elevated. Analysts maintain a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating with a $59.75 price target.

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC lowered its stake in Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE:WD - Free Report) by 54.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 62,463 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 76,092 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC owned 0.18% of Walker & Dunlop worth $2,193,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WD. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of Walker & Dunlop during the second quarter worth about $289,614,000. Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new stake in Walker & Dunlop in the second quarter valued at about $63,434,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Walker & Dunlop by 8.2% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,369,114 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $60,760,000 after buying an additional 104,008 shares during the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. increased its holdings in Walker & Dunlop by 3.7% in the second quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 555,439 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $30,383,000 after buying an additional 19,988 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Conversant Capital LLC increased its holdings in Walker & Dunlop by 33.0% in the first quarter. Conversant Capital LLC now owns 560,316 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $24,867,000 after buying an additional 138,936 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.97% of the company's stock.

Walker & Dunlop Price Performance

NYSE:WD opened at $34.61 on Wednesday. Walker & Dunlop, Inc. has a 12-month low of $31.40 and a 12-month high of $85.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.90 and a beta of 1.52. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $37.28 and a 200 day simple moving average of $48.49.

Walker & Dunlop (NYSE:WD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.29. The company had revenue of $306.69 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $337.37 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.15 earnings per share. Walker & Dunlop's quarterly revenue was down 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year.

Walker & Dunlop Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th were issued a dividend of $0.68 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $2.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.9%. Walker & Dunlop's payout ratio is 242.86%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Citizens Jmp reduced their target price on Walker & Dunlop from $55.00 to $50.00 and set a "market outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 16th. Citigroup reiterated a "market outperform" rating on shares of Walker & Dunlop in a research report on Friday, October 16th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Walker & Dunlop from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. Wall Street Zen raised Walker & Dunlop from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 29th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Walker & Dunlop from $57.00 to $45.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 9th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Walker & Dunlop has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $59.75.

About Walker & Dunlop

Walker & Dunlop, Inc is a commercial real estate finance and advisory firm serving property owners, investors and developers across the United States. The company provides financing, investment sales, valuation, research and advisory services for a broad range of commercial real estate assets, including multifamily, office, industrial, retail, hospitality and senior housing properties.

Its financing business arranges debt and equity solutions through relationships with banks, life insurance companies, government-sponsored enterprises and other capital providers.

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