Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.02 EPS

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC - Get Free Report) issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The financial services provider reported $1.37 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.39 by ($0.02), Yahoo Finance reports. The business had revenue of $78.84 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $77.34 million. Westamerica Bancorporation had a return on equity of 23.61% and a net margin of 49.39%.

Westamerica Bancorporation Stock Up 2.7 %

NASDAQ WABC traded up $1.23 on Friday, reaching $46.78. The company had a trading volume of 169,117 shares, compared to its average volume of 157,538. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.25 billion, a PE ratio of 7.72 and a beta of 0.56. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $46.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $48.98. Westamerica Bancorporation has a 12 month low of $35.52 and a 12 month high of $57.96.

Westamerica Bancorporation Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 5th were issued a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 2nd. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.76%. Westamerica Bancorporation's dividend payout ratio is currently 29.04%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of Westamerica Bancorporation from $51.00 to $50.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. StockNews.com cut shares of Westamerica Bancorporation from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Westamerica Bancorporation from $60.00 to $58.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 19th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Westamerica Bancorporation

In other Westamerica Bancorporation news, CEO David L. Payne sold 15,000 shares of Westamerica Bancorporation stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.75, for a total value of $746,250.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 288,689 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,362,277.75. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Westamerica Bancorporation news, CEO David L. Payne sold 15,000 shares of Westamerica Bancorporation stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.75, for a total value of $746,250.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 288,689 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,362,277.75. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO David L. Payne sold 11,272 shares of Westamerica Bancorporation stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.79, for a total transaction of $527,416.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 242,417 shares in the company, valued at $11,342,691.43. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 45,000 shares of company stock worth $2,213,458. Insiders own 4.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Westamerica Bancorporation

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 53,765 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,033,000 after buying an additional 480 shares during the last quarter. Virtus Investment Advisers Inc. bought a new position in Westamerica Bancorporation during the 4th quarter valued at about $654,000. Barclays PLC grew its holdings in Westamerica Bancorporation by 39.6% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 55,863 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,151,000 after purchasing an additional 15,858 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its holdings in Westamerica Bancorporation by 67.9% during the 4th quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 55,302 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,120,000 after purchasing an additional 22,364 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in Westamerica Bancorporation by 27.7% during the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 20,888 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,178,000 after purchasing an additional 4,533 shares during the last quarter. 81.89% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Westamerica Bancorporation Company Profile

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.