Insider Selling: Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) CEO Sells 5,000 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• CEO Charles Blankenship sold 5,000 Woodward shares on March 5 at an average of $384.75 for a $1.923M transaction, reducing his stake by 7.06% to 65,829 shares; the sale was disclosed in an SEC filing.
• Woodward beat expectations for the quarter with $2.17 EPS vs. $1.65 est. and $996.45M revenue (up 28.8% year-over-year), and set FY2026 guidance of $8.20–$8.60 EPS; the stock traded around $384.56, up about 2.9%.
• Management is returning capital—the company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.32 and authorized a $1.8 billion buyback (up to ~11.6% of outstanding shares), signaling confidence in the stock’s valuation.

Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD - Get Free Report) CEO Charles Blankenship sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $384.75, for a total transaction of $1,923,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 65,829 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,327,707.75. This represents a 7.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Woodward Stock Up 2.9%

Shares of NASDAQ WWD traded up $10.66 on Monday, hitting $384.56. The company had a trading volume of 619,818 shares, compared to its average volume of 655,705. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.43, a PEG ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 2.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Woodward, Inc. has a 12-month low of $146.82 and a 12-month high of $403.31. The business has a 50 day moving average of $353.57 and a two-hundred day moving average of $296.16.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 2nd. The technology company reported $2.17 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.52. The business had revenue of $996.45 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $901.92 million. Woodward had a net margin of 12.89% and a return on equity of 19.07%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 28.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.35 earnings per share. Woodward has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.200-8.600 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Woodward, Inc. will post 6.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Woodward Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 19th were given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 19th. This is a positive change from Woodward's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Woodward's dividend payout ratio is 16.12%.

Woodward announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Thursday, November 20th that permits the company to buyback $1.80 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the technology company to buy up to 11.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WWD has been the topic of several research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Woodward from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, January 10th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Woodward from $350.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Woodward in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of Woodward from $430.00 to $445.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $450.00 price objective on shares of Woodward in a research note on Sunday, February 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Woodward currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $354.80.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Woodward

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in WWD. AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its position in shares of Woodward by 2.6% in the third quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 1,586 shares of the technology company's stock worth $401,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Woodward by 3.5% during the third quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,221 shares of the technology company's stock worth $308,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. grew its position in Woodward by 2.8% during the third quarter. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. now owns 1,553 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $392,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in Woodward by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,036 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $267,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, AE Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Woodward by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,626 shares of the technology company's stock worth $644,000 after buying an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.18% of the company's stock.

About Woodward

Woodward, Inc NASDAQ: WWD is a global leader in the design, manufacture and service of control systems and components for the aerospace and industrial markets. Founded in 1870 and headquartered in Fort Collins, Colorado, the company specializes in motion control, fuel systems, actuation, and digital control solutions. Its offerings enable precision management of flow, pressure and motion in critical applications ranging from aircraft engines and power turbines to hydraulic systems.

Woodward's product portfolio is organized into two primary segments: Aerospace and Industrial.

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