Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) Stock Breaks Above 50 Day Moving Average After Analyst Downgrade

Key Points

• Western Alliance shares rose above their 50-day moving average, trading as high as $78.24 versus the average of $76.85, after Weiss Ratings upgraded the stock from Hold to Buy.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive: 12 analysts rate the stock Buy and four Hold, for a consensus Moderate Buy rating and an average price target of $92.44.
• The bank beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, with EPS of $2.45 and revenue of $1.01 billion; it also raised its quarterly dividend from $0.42 to $0.46 per share.

Shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Get Free Report) crossed above its 50-day moving average during trading on Monday after Weiss Ratings upgraded the stock from a hold (c+) rating to a buy (b-) rating. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $76.85 and traded as high as $78.24. Western Alliance Bancorporation shares last traded at $77.2550, with a volume of 919,366 shares changing hands.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Mizuho set a $96.00 price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 3rd. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $90.00 to $85.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $90.00 to $85.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $95.00 target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $92.44.

Institutional Trading of Western Alliance Bancorporation

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation in the second quarter valued at approximately $926,898,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,813,995 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $270,203,000 after purchasing an additional 36,534 shares during the last quarter. Davis Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 2nd quarter worth $274,219,000. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC bought a new position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 2nd quarter valued at $174,329,000. Finally, Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 2nd quarter valued at $101,995,000. 79.15% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Up 2.3%

The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The business's fifty day moving average price is $76.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $79.64. The firm has a market cap of $8.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.54, a P/E/G ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.43.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 19th. The financial services provider reported $2.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.43 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $987.91 million. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a net margin of 17.34% and a return on equity of 13.50%. Western Alliance Bancorporation's revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.28 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.04 EPS for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 12th will be given a $0.46 dividend. This is an increase from Western Alliance Bancorporation's previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 12th. Western Alliance Bancorporation's payout ratio is presently 18.56%.

About Western Alliance Bancorporation

Western Alliance Bancorporation is a bank holding company headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, and the parent of Western Alliance Bank. The company provides commercial banking and related financial services to businesses, business owners and individuals.

Its services include business and commercial real estate lending, deposit accounts, treasury management, and specialized banking for industries such as technology, healthcare, and property management. Through its banking divisions and specialized business lines, Western Alliance serves clients across the western United States and beyond.

Western Alliance traces its history to the 1990s and has expanded through acquisitions and the development of regional banking divisions.

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