Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) Stock

Key Points

• Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised its price target to $58 (from $55) while maintaining a "market perform" rating, implying roughly a 7.99% upside; the stock's consensus remains a "Hold" with an average target of $54.
• Westamerica beat quarterly estimates, reporting $1.13 EPS versus $1.08 expected and $62.3M in revenue versus $60.7M, with a 12.52% ROE and a 42.75% net margin.
• The board approved a $2.0 million share repurchase (about 0.2% of shares) and institutional ownership is high at ~81.9%, with recent sizable buys from firms like UBS, Millennium and AQR.

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC - Get Free Report) had its price target raised by analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $55.00 to $58.00 in a research report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "market perform" rating on the financial services provider's stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods' target price points to a potential upside of 7.99% from the stock's current price.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on WABC. Weiss Ratings raised Westamerica Bancorporation from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Wall Street Zen cut Westamerica Bancorporation from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $54.00.

Westamerica Bancorporation Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of Westamerica Bancorporation stock opened at $53.71 on Friday. Westamerica Bancorporation has a 12-month low of $44.93 and a 12-month high of $54.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.88 and a beta of 0.57. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $51.72 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $49.64.

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.05. Westamerica Bancorporation had a return on equity of 12.52% and a net margin of 42.75%.The company had revenue of $62.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $60.70 million. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Westamerica Bancorporation will post 4.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Westamerica Bancorporation declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, December 18th that permits the company to repurchase $2.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 0.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Westamerica Bancorporation by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 897,572 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $42,932,000 after acquiring an additional 3,378 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG boosted its holdings in Westamerica Bancorporation by 279.4% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 457,206 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $21,868,000 after acquiring an additional 336,714 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in Westamerica Bancorporation by 101.3% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 399,197 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $19,956,000 after acquiring an additional 200,884 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Westamerica Bancorporation by 35.9% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 381,832 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $18,263,000 after acquiring an additional 100,867 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Westamerica Bancorporation by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 298,471 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $14,276,000 after acquiring an additional 14,121 shares during the last quarter. 81.89% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Westamerica Bancorporation

Westamerica Bancorporation NASDAQ: WABC is a California-based bank holding company that provides a comprehensive suite of commercial banking, trust and wealth management services. Through its primary subsidiary, Westamerica Bank, the company offers deposit products, lending solutions and treasury management to a diverse clientele that includes small and mid-sized businesses, professionals, non-profit organizations and individuals.

The company's lending portfolio encompasses commercial real estate financing, agricultural loans, equipment financing and lines of credit designed to support working capital needs.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.