Western Alliance Bancorporation $WAL Shares Purchased by Rhino Investment Partners Inc

Key Points

• Rhino Investment Partners increased its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 35.1% in Q3 to 143,702 shares (worth about $12,462,000), making WAL its 12th largest holding and 3.9% of the fund's portfolio.
• Institutional activity is heavy — notable moves include a new position by Norges Bank (~$137.3M) and Barrow Hanley boosting its stake to ~5.98M shares (~$518.6M); overall institutional ownership stands at 79.15%.
• Analysts rate WAL a consensus "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $99.40; the bank recently beat quarterly EPS expectations (EPS $2.59 vs. $2.40) and pays a quarterly dividend of $0.42 (≈2.5% yield).

Rhino Investment Partners Inc boosted its stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Free Report) by 35.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 143,702 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 37,354 shares during the quarter. Western Alliance Bancorporation comprises 3.9% of Rhino Investment Partners Inc's investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Rhino Investment Partners Inc owned 0.13% of Western Alliance Bancorporation worth $12,462,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in the second quarter valued at approximately $137,289,000. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC grew its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 36.5% in the 3rd quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 5,979,916 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $518,578,000 after buying an additional 1,599,537 shares during the last quarter. Perpetual Ltd acquired a new position in Western Alliance Bancorporation in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,072,000. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 35.8% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,179,518 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $102,288,000 after acquiring an additional 310,826 shares during the period. Finally, Global Frontier Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in the second quarter valued at about $22,224,000. 79.15% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on WAL. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $98.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $105.00 target price (up from $100.00) on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Citigroup cut their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $107.00 to $103.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Weiss Ratings raised Western Alliance Bancorporation from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, UBS Group set a $93.00 price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $99.40.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of WAL opened at $67.96 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The firm's 50-day moving average is $87.14 and its two-hundred day moving average is $84.77. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a twelve month low of $57.05 and a twelve month high of $97.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.78, a PEG ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 1.34.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $2.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $890.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $912.69 million. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a net margin of 18.04% and a return on equity of 13.33%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 17.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.95 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 6th. Investors of record on Friday, February 20th were issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 20th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. Western Alliance Bancorporation's payout ratio is currently 19.24%.

About Western Alliance Bancorporation

Western Alliance Bancorporation is a bank holding company headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona. Through its principal subsidiary, Western Alliance Bank, the company provides a range of banking services to commercial clients, entrepreneurs and real estate developers. As one of the largest regional banks in the western United States, it focuses on relationship-driven banking solutions tailored to niche industries and growing businesses.

The company's core offerings include deposit products, treasury management and a variety of lending services.

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