Teacher Retirement System of Texas cut its holdings in Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC - Free Report) by 77.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 5,557 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 19,483 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas' holdings in Westamerica Bancorporation were worth $281,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 4,946.6% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 109,310 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,534,000 after acquiring an additional 107,144 shares in the last quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,437,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,647,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,564,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 74.7% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 142,330 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,467,000 after acquiring an additional 60,871 shares in the last quarter. 81.89% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
WABC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on Westamerica Bancorporation from $54.00 to $50.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Westamerica Bancorporation from $58.00 to $55.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Westamerica Bancorporation from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, June 27th.
Read Our Latest Report on WABC
Westamerica Bancorporation Price Performance
Shares of NASDAQ:WABC traded down $0.62 on Friday, hitting $50.14. The company's stock had a trading volume of 121,564 shares, compared to its average volume of 136,625. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $49.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $49.47. Westamerica Bancorporation has a 1 year low of $42.00 and a 1 year high of $59.97. The company has a market capitalization of $1.31 billion, a PE ratio of 10.49 and a beta of 0.64.
Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $64.88 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $65.80 million. Westamerica Bancorporation had a return on equity of 13.86% and a net margin of 43.69%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Westamerica Bancorporation will post 4.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Westamerica Bancorporation Increases Dividend
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 5th were paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 5th. This is a boost from Westamerica Bancorporation's previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. Westamerica Bancorporation's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.49%.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other news, SVP Robert James Baker, Jr. sold 710 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.16, for a total value of $34,193.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP John A. Thorson sold 2,243 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.57, for a total value of $108,942.51. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 11,591 shares of the company's stock, valued at $562,974.87. This represents a 16.21% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 5.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
About Westamerica Bancorporation
(
Free Report)
Westamerica Bancorporation operates as a bank holding company for the Westamerica Bank that provides various banking products and services to individual and commercial customers. The company accepts various deposit products, including retail savings and checking accounts, as well as certificates of deposit.
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