Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) Shares Acquired by Handelsbanken Fonder AB

Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Free Report) by 17.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 30,560 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 4,600 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB's holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation were worth $2,348,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 3,114 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $260,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 56.0% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 326 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares during the period. MidWestOne Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. MidWestOne Financial Group Inc. now owns 26,646 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,226,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,087 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $258,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 3,387 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $283,000 after buying an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.15% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $105.00 to $85.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $92.00 target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $95.00 to $80.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $107.00 to $97.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, DA Davidson lowered their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $106.00 to $90.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $97.77.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Down 3.5%

Shares of NYSE WAL opened at $71.22 on Friday. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 1 year low of $57.05 and a 1 year high of $98.10. The firm's 50-day moving average is $71.42 and its 200-day moving average is $79.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.86 billion, a PE ratio of 10.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.29.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.78 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $790.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $792.25 million. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a return on equity of 13.14% and a net margin of 15.49%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.72 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.05 EPS for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th were issued a $0.38 dividend. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 15th. Western Alliance Bancorporation's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.85%.

About Western Alliance Bancorporation

Western Alliance Bancorporation operates as the bank holding company for Western Alliance Bank that provides various banking products and related services primarily in Arizona, California, and Nevada. It operates through Commercial and Consumer Related segments. The company offers deposit products, including checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as fixed-rate and fixed maturity certificates of deposit accounts; demand deposits; and treasury management and residential mortgage products and services.

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