Zacks Research Has Pessimistic View of Woodward Q3 Earnings

Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD - Free Report) - Investment analysts at Zacks Research reduced their Q3 2025 earnings estimates for Woodward in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, May 19th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now expects that the technology company will earn $1.55 per share for the quarter, down from their prior estimate of $1.60. The consensus estimate for Woodward's current full-year earnings is $6.15 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Woodward's Q4 2025 earnings at $1.56 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $1.65 EPS and Q4 2026 earnings at $1.98 EPS.

WWD has been the subject of several other research reports. Truist Financial set a $232.00 price target on shares of Woodward in a research report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Woodward from $175.00 to $193.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $245.00 price target (up previously from $225.00) on shares of Woodward in a report on Friday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $187.00 price objective on Woodward and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on Woodward from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Woodward currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $204.75.

Woodward Stock Performance

Shares of Woodward stock traded up $4.61 on Wednesday, reaching $210.61. 456,037 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 464,542. Woodward has a 1-year low of $145.98 and a 1-year high of $216.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.89. The company's 50-day moving average is $185.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $182.21. The firm has a market cap of $12.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.28, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.24.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The technology company reported $1.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.25. Woodward had a net margin of 11.18% and a return on equity of 16.76%. The firm had revenue of $883.63 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $838.61 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.62 earnings per share. Woodward's quarterly revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis.

Institutional Trading of Woodward

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WWD. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its position in shares of Woodward by 191.2% in the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 166 shares of the technology company's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its stake in shares of Woodward by 2,314.3% in the 1st quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 169 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Woodward by 189.8% in the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 171 shares of the technology company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Berbice Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Woodward during the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC boosted its position in Woodward by 116.7% during the first quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 182 shares of the technology company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. 81.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Gregg C. Sengstack sold 4,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $187.86, for a total transaction of $864,156.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 17,450 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,278,157. This represents a 20.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Thomas G. Cromwell sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $184.50, for a total transaction of $1,845,000.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 15,477 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,855,506.50. This represents a 39.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 40,700 shares of company stock valued at $7,851,450 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.82% of the company's stock.

Woodward Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.53%. Woodward's dividend payout ratio is presently 18.09%.

About Woodward

Woodward, Inc designs, manufactures, and services control solutions for the aerospace and industrial markets worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Aerospace and Industrial. The Aerospace segment provides fuel pumps, metering units, actuators, air valves, specialty valves, fuel nozzles, and thrust reverser actuation systems for turbine engines and nacelles, and flight deck controls, actuators, servocontrols, motors, and sensors for aircraft.