West Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WTBA) Shares Pass Above 200 Day Moving Average - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• West Bancorporation shares rose above their 200-day moving average, trading as high as $28.19 and last changing hands at $28.05 versus the average of $24.68.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious, with one Buy rating and three Holds; the consensus rating is Hold with a $29.00 price target.
• The company slightly exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, reporting $0.64 in EPS and $28.22 million in revenue, while raising its quarterly dividend to $0.26 per share, equivalent to a 3.7% yield.

West Bancorporation, Inc. (NASDAQ:WTBA - Get Free Report)'s stock price crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $24.68 and traded as high as $28.19. West Bancorporation shares last traded at $28.05, with a volume of 57,648 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on WTBA. Wall Street Zen downgraded West Bancorporation from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of West Bancorporation from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of West Bancorporation in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Finally, Hovde Group boosted their price objective on shares of West Bancorporation from $25.50 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $29.00.

West Bancorporation Stock Performance

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 company has a market cap of $477.97 million, a P/E ratio of 12.58 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $25.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $24.68.

West Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WTBA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $28.22 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.15 million. West Bancorporation had a return on equity of 15.48% and a net margin of 18.75%.During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.47 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that West Bancorporation, Inc. will post 2.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Bancorporation Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 5th will be given a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 5th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. This is an increase from West Bancorporation's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. West Bancorporation's dividend payout ratio is presently 44.84%.

Institutional Trading of West Bancorporation

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in West Bancorporation by 4,593.5% during the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,455 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 1,424 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its position in shares of West Bancorporation by 68.9% during the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,618 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 660 shares during the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its stake in shares of West Bancorporation by 37.6% in the fourth quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 1,665 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 455 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in shares of West Bancorporation by 662.9% in the second 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 West Bancorporation in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $126,000. 44.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About West Bancorporation

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.