Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) Reaches New 12-Month High - Here's Why

Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $253.70 and last traded at $253.50, with a volume of 514536 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $252.34.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on WWD shares. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Woodward from $267.00 to $294.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $245.00 price target (up from $225.00) on shares of Woodward in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Woodward from $175.00 to $193.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Woodward from $229.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Woodward from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $232.25.

Woodward Trading Down 0.5%

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $227.06 and a 200 day moving average of $196.87. The company has a market capitalization of $14.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.60, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.95.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The technology company reported $1.69 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.25. Woodward had a return on equity of 16.86% and a net margin of 11.36%. The firm had revenue of $883.63 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $838.61 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.62 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Woodward, Inc. will post 6.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Woodward Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 22nd. Woodward's payout ratio is 18.09%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Charles P. Blankenship sold 2,450 shares of Woodward stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.85, for a total transaction of $565,582.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 64,739 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,944,998.15. This trade represents a 3.65% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Randall Hobbs sold 846 shares of Woodward stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $211,500.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 48,981 shares in the company, valued at $12,245,250. This trade represents a 1.70% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 42,096 shares of company stock worth $9,247,289 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.82% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Woodward

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of WWD. Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Woodward by 20.8% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 401 shares of the technology company's stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Atria Investments Inc increased its stake in Woodward by 7.0% in the 4th quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 3,936 shares of the technology company's stock worth $655,000 after acquiring an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Woodward in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,687,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Woodward in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,187,000. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its stake in Woodward by 10.4% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 16,008 shares of the technology company's stock worth $2,664,000 after acquiring an additional 1,512 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.18% of the company's stock.

Woodward Company Profile

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.