Prudential Financial Inc. Has $760,000 Position in Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL)

Prudential Financial Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Free Report) by 78.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,102 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 33,369 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc.'s holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation were worth $760,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Cerity Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the third quarter worth about $463,000. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 11.2% during the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 7,512 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $650,000 after acquiring an additional 758 shares during the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. acquired a new position in Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $463,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 26.2% during the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 31,772 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,748,000 after acquiring an additional 6,605 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 46.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,488,345 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $388,197,000 after purchasing an additional 1,418,472 shares during the last quarter. 79.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. DA Davidson decreased their target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $110.00 to $106.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. StockNews.com upgraded Western Alliance Bancorporation from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. UBS Group began coverage on Western Alliance Bancorporation in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $115.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $110.00 to $105.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $107.00 to $97.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Western Alliance Bancorporation currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $96.40.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WAL traded down $0.16 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $63.07. 1,531,256 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,214,046. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.88, a P/E/G ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $78.97 and its 200-day simple moving average is $84.55. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a twelve month low of $53.75 and a twelve month high of $98.10.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.92 by $0.03. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a net margin of 15.49% and a return on equity of 13.14%. As a group, research analysts predict that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Western Alliance Bancorporation's payout ratio is 21.41%.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Profile

Western Alliance Bancorporation operates as the bank holding company for Western Alliance Bank that provides various banking products and related services primarily in Arizona, California, and Nevada. It operates through Commercial and Consumer Related segments. The company offers deposit products, including checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as fixed-rate and fixed maturity certificates of deposit accounts; demand deposits; and treasury management and residential mortgage products and services.