West Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WTBA) Posts Earnings Results

Key Points

• West Bancorporation beat quarterly expectations by reporting EPS of $0.64 versus the $0.63 consensus, while revenue came in at $28.22 million, slightly above estimates.
• The company showed improved profitability, with return on equity of 14.88% and net margin of 17.30%, and earnings were up from $0.47 per share a year ago.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: the stock’s average rating is Hold, with an average price target of $26.25, though shares traded up on the earnings news.

West Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WTBA - Get Free Report) issued its earnings results on Thursday. The financial services provider reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.01, FiscalAI reports. The business had revenue of $28.22 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $28.15 million. West Bancorporation had a return on equity of 14.88% and a net margin of 17.30%.During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.47 earnings per share.

West Bancorporation Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WTBA traded up $0.58 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $27.20. The stock had a trading volume of 8,644 shares, compared to its average volume of 49,043. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $25.22 and a 200-day moving average of $24.42. West Bancorporation has a 12-month low of $17.31 and a 12-month high of $27.87. The company has a market capitalization of $463.23 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.92 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 0.99.

Institutional Trading of West Bancorporation

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in WTBA. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in shares of West Bancorporation by 4,593.5% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,455 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 1,424 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its position in shares of West Bancorporation by 68.9% in the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,618 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 660 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its stake in shares of West Bancorporation by 37.6% during the fourth quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 1,665 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 455 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its holdings in shares of West Bancorporation by 662.9% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,784 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $74,000 after acquiring an additional 3,288 shares during the period. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in shares of West Bancorporation during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $126,000. 44.30% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of West Bancorporation in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Hovde Group assumed coverage on shares of West Bancorporation in a research note on Monday, April 6th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $25.50 price target on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of West Bancorporation from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, April 25th. Zacks Research cut West Bancorporation from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their target price on West Bancorporation from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $26.25.

West Bancorporation Company Profile

West Bancorporation, Inc is the bank holding company for West Town Bank and Trust, a full-service community bank headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Through its subsidiary, the company offers a comprehensive suite of commercial and consumer banking products, including deposit accounts, residential and commercial mortgages, business loans and treasury management services. West Bancorporation focuses on delivering personalized financial solutions to small- and medium-sized businesses, real estate developers and individual customers within its urban market.

Since launching operations in 2006, West Town Bank and Trust has steadily expanded its presence across the Chicago metropolitan area.

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