West Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WTBA) Share Price Crosses Above 200-Day Moving Average - Here's Why

Key Points

• West Bancorporation shares rose above their 200-day moving average, reaching $29.38 and last trading at $28.97 versus the $26.60 long-term average.
• Analysts maintain a cautious outlook, with one Buy rating and three Holds; the consensus rating is Hold with a $29.00 target price.
• The company exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, while increasing its quarterly dividend from $0.25 to $0.26 per share, equivalent to a 3.6% annualized yield.

West Bancorporation, Inc. (NASDAQ:WTBA - Get Free Report)'s share price crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday. The stock has a 200-day moving average of $26.60 and traded as high as $29.38. West Bancorporation shares last traded at $28.97, with a volume of 41,494 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of West Bancorporation from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 1st. Weiss Ratings upgraded West Bancorporation from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b+)" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on West Bancorporation from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Hovde Group raised their target price on West Bancorporation from $25.50 to $28.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, West Bancorporation has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $29.00.

West Bancorporation Trading Down 0.8%

The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $28.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $26.60. The company has a market capitalization of $493.65 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.99 and a beta of 0.71.

West Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WTBA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.01. West Bancorporation had a net margin of 18.75% and a return on equity of 15.48%. The company had revenue of $28.22 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.15 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.47 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that West Bancorporation, Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

West Bancorporation Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 5th were given a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. This is a boost from West Bancorporation's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 5th. West Bancorporation's payout ratio is presently 46.64%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On West Bancorporation

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WTBA. Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its position in shares of West Bancorporation by 332.0% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 36,548 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $970,000 after acquiring an additional 28,087 shares in the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its holdings in shares of West Bancorporation by 28.8% during the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 34,480 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $820,000 after acquiring an additional 7,702 shares in the last quarter. Independent Wealth Network Inc. raised its stake in shares of West Bancorporation by 42.0% during the 1st quarter. Independent Wealth Network Inc. now owns 14,698 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $350,000 after purchasing an additional 4,345 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its stake in West Bancorporation by 83.5% in the third quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 1,411 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 642 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of West Bancorporation by 4.2% in the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 11,186 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $297,000 after purchasing an additional 448 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 44.30% of the company's stock.

About West Bancorporation

West Bancorporation, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in West Des Moines, Iowa. Its principal subsidiary, West Bank, provides commercial banking services to businesses, agricultural customers, professionals and individuals.

West Bank's products and services include commercial and real estate lending, agricultural loans, residential mortgage lending, consumer loans, deposit accounts, cash-management services, online and mobile banking, and trust and investment services. The bank also supports businesses through treasury-management and other financial services.

West Bancorporation traces its banking operations to the establishment of West Bank in 1893.

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