Earnest Partners LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD)

Earnest Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD - Free Report) by 2.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,418,123 shares of the technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 38,774 shares during the period. Woodward accounts for about 1.1% of Earnest Partners LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest holding. Earnest Partners LLC owned approximately 2.39% of Woodward worth $236,004,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Berbice Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Woodward in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. NBT Bank N A NY bought a new stake in Woodward during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Mather Group LLC. boosted its stake in Woodward by 44.8% in the 4th quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 278 shares of the technology company's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in Woodward in the 4th quarter worth approximately $57,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in Woodward by 52.0% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 374 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.18% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director John D. Cohn sold 2,800 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.52, for a total value of $536,256.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 20,965 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,015,216.80. The trade was a 11.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Thomas G. Cromwell sold 3,300 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.36, for a total value of $641,388.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 15,477 shares in the company, valued at $3,008,109.72. The trade was a 17.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 30,700 shares of company stock valued at $5,751,700. 0.82% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Woodward Trading Up 2.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ WWD traded up $4.67 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $195.16. 264,027 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 465,348. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.24. The company's 50 day moving average price is $178.24 and its 200 day moving average price is $177.82. Woodward, Inc. has a 12 month low of $145.98 and a 12 month high of $201.64. The company has a current ratio of 1.89, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The technology company reported $1.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $883.63 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $838.61 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.62 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Woodward, Inc. will post 6.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Woodward Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.57%. Woodward's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.09%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on WWD shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $187.00 target price on shares of Woodward and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, April 14th. StockNews.com upgraded Woodward from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group boosted their target price on Woodward from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Woodward from $175.00 to $193.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price objective on Woodward from $205.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday. 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 MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $195.00.

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.