Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) Shares Gap Down - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• The shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation gapped down from $78.84 to $73.70 before trading, closing at $72.99 with significant trading volume of over 1.16 million shares.
• Analysts have mixed opinions on the stock, with JPMorgan Chase upgrading its price target to $105.00, while Wells Fargo maintains an "underweight" rating.
• Western Alliance Bancorporation recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.38 per share, reflecting a dividend yield of 2.1% and a payout ratio of approximately 20%.

Shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Get Free Report) gapped down prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $78.84, but opened at $73.70. Western Alliance Bancorporation shares last traded at $72.99, with a volume of 1,161,059 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on WAL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "underweight" rating on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Industrial Alliance Securities set a $112.00 price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research report on Tuesday, August 26th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $103.14.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Trading Down 6.9%

The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The business's fifty day moving average is $85.92 and its 200 day moving average is $78.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 1.35.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a net margin of 16.39% and a return on equity of 12.62%. The business had revenue of $718.00 million for the quarter. Equities analysts predict that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 14th were issued a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 14th. Western Alliance Bancorporation's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.97%.

Insider Transactions at Western Alliance Bancorporation

In other Western Alliance Bancorporation news, insider Tim R. Bruckner sold 2,500 shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.91, for a total value of $209,775.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 24,759 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,077,527.69. The trade was a 9.17% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 2.68% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WAL. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 2nd quarter worth about $137,289,000. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 1st quarter worth about $45,486,000. FJ Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 824.8% during the 1st quarter. FJ Capital Management LLC now owns 442,507 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $33,998,000 after buying an additional 394,660 shares during the period. Perpetual Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 3rd quarter worth about $31,072,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,076,021 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $466,821,000 after buying an additional 339,758 shares during the period. 79.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Company 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.

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