Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Has Lowered Expectations for Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) Stock Price

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC - Get Free Report) had its target price lowered by research analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $55.00 to $54.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,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 7.95% from the company's previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on WABC. Wall Street Zen raised Westamerica Bancorporation from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Westamerica Bancorporation from $54.00 to $50.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 21st.

Westamerica Bancorporation Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of WABC traded down $0.12 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $50.03. 6,184 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 152,754. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. Westamerica Bancorporation has a 1 year low of $42.00 and a 1 year high of $59.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.47 and a beta of 0.64. The business's 50-day moving average price is $49.06 and its 200-day moving average price is $49.46.

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $64.88 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $65.80 million. Westamerica Bancorporation had a net margin of 43.69% and a return on equity of 13.81%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Westamerica Bancorporation will post 4.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Westamerica Bancorporation

In other news, SVP Robert James Baker, Jr. sold 710 shares of Westamerica Bancorporation stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.16, for a total transaction of $34,193.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP John A. Thorson sold 2,243 shares of Westamerica Bancorporation stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.57, for a total value of $108,942.51. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 11,591 shares in the company, valued at approximately $562,974.87. The trade was a 16.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 5.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Westamerica Bancorporation

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Westamerica Bancorporation in the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,647,000. Swiss National Bank increased its stake in Westamerica Bancorporation by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 52,500 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,754,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its stake in Westamerica Bancorporation by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 37,366 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,960,000 after acquiring an additional 1,940 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its stake in Westamerica Bancorporation by 20.0% in the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 25,040 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,314,000 after acquiring an additional 4,176 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new position in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $273,000. Institutional investors own 81.89% of the company's stock.

About Westamerica Bancorporation

Westamerica Bancorporation operates as a bank holding company for the Westamerica Bank that provides various banking products and services to individual and commercial customers. The company accepts various deposit products, including retail savings and checking accounts, as well as certificates of deposit.

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