Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Buys 22,540 Shares of Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD - Free Report) by 26.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 106,441 shares of the technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 22,540 shares during the quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC owned about 0.18% of Woodward worth $14,490,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hawk Ridge Capital Management LP increased its position in shares of Woodward by 61.9% during the third quarter. Hawk Ridge Capital Management LP now owns 490,042 shares of the technology company's stock worth $60,893,000 after acquiring an additional 187,300 shares in the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Woodward in the third quarter worth approximately $16,627,000. Earnest Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Woodward by 6.3% in the third quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,062,665 shares of the technology company's stock worth $132,047,000 after purchasing an additional 62,897 shares during the last quarter. Trexquant Investment LP lifted its holdings in shares of Woodward by 1,228.8% in the third quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 67,585 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $8,398,000 after purchasing an additional 62,499 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of Woodward by 6.5% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 998,396 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $124,061,000 after buying an additional 61,216 shares during the last quarter. 81.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Woodward Stock Performance

WWD traded up $0.84 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $168.83. The stock had a trading volume of 434,529 shares, compared to its average volume of 549,373. The stock has a market cap of $10.18 billion, a PE ratio of 29.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.31. Woodward, Inc. has a 1 year low of $105.18 and a 1 year high of $169.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 2.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $150.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $139.64.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, April 29th. The technology company reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.34. The firm had revenue of $835.34 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $807.04 million. Woodward had a net margin of 11.09% and a return on equity of 16.50%. The company's revenue was up 16.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.01 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Woodward, Inc. will post 5.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Woodward Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 5th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 21st. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.59%. Woodward's dividend payout ratio is currently 17.48%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Thomas G. Cromwell sold 38,700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.98, for a total value of $5,494,626.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 11,833 shares in the company, valued at $1,680,049.34. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, EVP Christopher Fawzy sold 11,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total value of $1,540,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 4,836 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $677,040. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, COO Thomas G. Cromwell sold 38,700 shares of Woodward stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.98, for a total transaction of $5,494,626.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 11,833 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,680,049.34. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 51,200 shares of company stock valued at $7,242,916. Company insiders own 1.12% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WWD has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Woodward from $159.00 to $201.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of Woodward from $182.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. UBS Group boosted their target price on Woodward from $168.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. StockNews.com downgraded Woodward from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on Woodward from $134.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $168.75.

About Woodward

Woodward, Inc designs, manufactures, and services control solutions for the aerospace and industrial markets worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Aerospace and Industrial. The Aerospace segment provides fuel pumps, metering units, actuators, air valves, specialty valves, fuel nozzles, and thrust reverser actuation systems for turbine engines and nacelles, and flight deck controls, actuators, servocontrols, motors, and sensors for aircraft.