Insider Selling: West Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WTBA) Director Sells $193,472.95 in Stock

Key Points

• Director Steven Gaer sold 6,215 shares for about $193,473, reducing his direct stake by 24.42% to 19,236 shares.
• West Bancorporation reported quarterly EPS of $0.67, matching analyst expectations, while revenue of $29.2 million exceeded the $28.95 million consensus.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share, equivalent to $1.04 annually and a 3.4% yield; analysts’ consensus rating is Hold, with a $29 price target.

West Bancorporation, Inc. (NASDAQ:WTBA - Get Free Report) Director Steven Gaer sold 6,215 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.13, for a total transaction of $193,472.95. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 19,236 shares of the company's stock, valued at $598,816.68. The trade was a 24.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

West Bancorporation Price Performance

WTBA stock traded down $0.18 during trading on Friday, hitting $30.53. 34,590 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 54,341. The stock has a market capitalization of $520.23 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.99 and a beta of 0.70. West Bancorporation, Inc. has a 52 week low of $20.89 and a 52 week high of $31.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 0.98. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $29.33 and a 200 day simple moving average of $26.27.

West Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WTBA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.67. The business had revenue of $29.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.95 million. West Bancorporation had a net margin of 19.83% and a return on equity of 16.09%. As a group, research analysts expect that West Bancorporation, Inc. will post 2.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

West Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 11th will be given a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 10th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.4%. West Bancorporation's dividend payout ratio is presently 44.26%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on West Bancorporation from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Hovde Group boosted their price target on shares of West Bancorporation from $25.50 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Weiss Ratings raised West Bancorporation from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b+)" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded West Bancorporation from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $29.00.

Institutional Trading of West Bancorporation

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Independent Wealth Network Inc. lifted its position in West Bancorporation by 3.1% during the third quarter. Independent Wealth Network Inc. now owns 15,260 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $435,000 after buying an additional 465 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue boosted its holdings in West Bancorporation by 83.5% in the 3rd quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 1,411 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 642 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in West Bancorporation by 4.2% during the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 11,186 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $297,000 after buying an additional 448 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC boosted its holdings in West Bancorporation by 332.0% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 36,548 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $970,000 after purchasing an additional 28,087 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its holdings in West Bancorporation by 28.8% in the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 34,480 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $820,000 after acquiring an additional 7,702 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 44.30% of the company's stock.

West Bancorporation Company Profile

West Bancorporation, Inc NASDAQ: WTBA is a bank holding company headquartered in West Des Moines, Iowa. It operates primarily through West Bank, a community banking institution that provides financial services to businesses, individuals and nonprofit organizations.

West Bank offers commercial and consumer lending, including commercial real estate, business, residential real estate and personal loans. Its deposit products include checking, savings, money market and certificate of deposit accounts, while additional services include treasury management, online and mobile banking, cash management and trust or wealth management services.

Founded in 1893, West Bank serves communities primarily in central and eastern Iowa, with a presence in the Des Moines metropolitan area and other Iowa markets.

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