Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE:WD) Shares Sold by LPL Financial LLC

LPL Financial LLC decreased its position in Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE:WD - Free Report) by 67.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,512 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 5,157 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC's holdings in Walker & Dunlop were worth $244,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in Walker & Dunlop by 230.8% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 751 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 524 shares during the period. KBC Group NV increased its stake in shares of Walker & Dunlop by 33.6% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,607 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $156,000 after purchasing an additional 404 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of Walker & Dunlop during the 4th quarter worth about $178,000. Crewe Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Walker & Dunlop by 42.9% in the 4th quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 2,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $194,000 after buying an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Xponance Inc. boosted its holdings in Walker & Dunlop by 9.5% in the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 2,308 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $224,000 after buying an additional 201 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.97% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Walker & Dunlop from $105.00 to $95.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walker & Dunlop

In other Walker & Dunlop news, CEO William M. Walker purchased 17,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $86.21 per share, with a total value of $1,508,675.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 411,271 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,455,672.91. This trade represents a 4.44 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 3.66% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Walker & Dunlop Stock Performance

Shares of WD stock traded down $2.31 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $74.23. The company had a trading volume of 555,415 shares, compared to its average volume of 194,052. Walker & Dunlop, Inc. has a 12-month low of $69.59 and a 12-month high of $118.19. The company has a market capitalization of $2.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.27 and a beta of 1.42. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $81.06 and a 200-day moving average of $94.56.

Walker & Dunlop (NYSE:WD - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $0.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.98 by ($0.90). Walker & Dunlop had a net margin of 9.55% and a return on equity of 9.64%. The company had revenue of $237.37 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $260.43 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.35 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Walker & Dunlop, Inc. will post 4.97 EPS for the current year.

Walker & Dunlop Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $0.67 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This is an increase from Walker & Dunlop's previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.61%. Walker & Dunlop's payout ratio is 84.01%.

Walker & Dunlop Company Profile

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.