Russell Investments Group Ltd. Has $2.62 Million Position in Western Alliance Bancorporation $WAL

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 16.8%, owning 34,078 shares valued at approximately $2.62 million as of the end of the last quarter.
• Several institutional investors, including Invesco Ltd. and Janus Henderson Group PLC, have also significantly increased their holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation, indicating strong institutional interest in the company.
• Equities analysts have raised their target prices for Western Alliance Bancorporation, with estimates now ranging from $87.00 to $105.00, reflecting a positive outlook on the company's performance.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Free Report) by 16.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 34,078 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 4,895 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd.'s holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation were worth $2,618,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,695,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 11.5% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 4,566 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $381,000 after purchasing an additional 470 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 213,666 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $17,850,000 after purchasing an additional 6,489 shares during the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp increased its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 8.1% during the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 96,994 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $8,103,000 after purchasing an additional 7,294 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 16.1% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 912,054 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $76,193,000 after purchasing an additional 126,158 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.15% of the company's stock.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Trading Up 1.0%

Western Alliance Bancorporation stock traded up $0.88 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $88.95. The stock had a trading volume of 969,530 shares, compared to its average volume of 943,747. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $81.32 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $77.29. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a twelve month low of $57.05 and a twelve month high of $98.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The firm has a market cap of $9.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.69, a PEG ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 1.33.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $2.07 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.04 by $0.03. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a return on equity of 12.62% and a net margin of 16.39%.The business had revenue of $836.21 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $838.58 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.75 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.38 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 14th. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Western Alliance Bancorporation's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.97%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Tim R. Bruckner sold 2,500 shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.91, for a total transaction of $209,775.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 24,759 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,077,527.69. This trade represents a 9.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 2.68% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on WAL. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $94.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Industrial Alliance Securities set a $104.00 target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation in a report on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen upgraded Western Alliance Bancorporation from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $80.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $97.79.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Profile

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.