First Trust Advisors LP Has $2.07 Million Stock Holdings in Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE:WD)

First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE:WD - Free Report) by 56.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 21,262 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 7,634 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP owned about 0.06% of Walker & Dunlop worth $2,067,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Walker & Dunlop by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,772,110 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $366,687,000 after buying an additional 27,670 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Walker & Dunlop by 7.4% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,318,599 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $128,181,000 after purchasing an additional 90,725 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Walker & Dunlop by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 460,122 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $44,728,000 after purchasing an additional 8,915 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Walker & Dunlop in the 4th quarter valued at about $40,226,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of Walker & Dunlop by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 348,456 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $33,873,000 after buying an additional 4,152 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.97% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walker & Dunlop

In other Walker & Dunlop news, CEO William M. Walker acquired 17,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $86.21 per share, with a total value of $1,508,675.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 411,271 shares in the company, valued at $35,455,672.91. The trade was a 4.44 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 3.66% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on WD shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Walker & Dunlop from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on Walker & Dunlop from $105.00 to $95.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 17th.

Walker & Dunlop Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE WD traded down $0.79 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $70.79. The company had a trading volume of 252,012 shares, compared to its average volume of 195,160. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $79.42 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $92.57. The stock has a market cap of $2.40 billion, a PE ratio of 22.19 and a beta of 1.64. Walker & Dunlop, Inc. has a 1-year low of $69.59 and a 1-year high of $118.19.

Walker & Dunlop (NYSE:WD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.98 by ($0.13). Walker & Dunlop had a return on equity of 9.64% and a net margin of 9.55%. The company had revenue of $237.37 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $260.43 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.35 EPS. Walker & Dunlop's quarterly revenue was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Walker & Dunlop, Inc. will post 4.97 EPS for the current year.

Walker & Dunlop Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a $0.67 dividend. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Walker & Dunlop's dividend payout ratio is currently 91.78%.

About Walker & Dunlop

Walker & Dunlop, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the provision of commercial real estate and finance services. It operates through the following segments: Capital Markets, Servicing and Asset Management, and Corporate. The Capital Markets segment offers a comprehensive range of commercial real estate finance products to customers.