Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) Reaches New 1-Year High - Here's What Happened

Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $238.54 and last traded at $235.95, with a volume of 183467 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $232.06.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WWD has been the topic of several analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Woodward from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $291.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. Truist Financial set a $267.00 price objective on Woodward and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. Wall Street Zen raised Woodward from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. UBS Group increased 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Woodward from $175.00 to $193.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $222.13.

Woodward Trading Up 1.0%

The stock has a market cap of $14.19 billion, a PE ratio of 38.61, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.95. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $203.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $188.61.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The technology company reported $1.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.25. Woodward had a return on equity of 16.86% and a net margin of 11.36%. The company had revenue of $883.63 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $838.61 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.62 earnings per share. Woodward's revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Woodward, Inc. will post 6.15 EPS for the current year.

Woodward Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd were issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.47%. Woodward's payout ratio is 18.09%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Woodward news, EVP Randall Hobbs sold 500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total value of $115,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 50,268 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,561,640. This represents a 0.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Thomas G. Cromwell sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $186.49, for a total value of $1,864,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 15,477 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,886,305.73. The trade was a 39.25% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 54,050 shares of company stock valued at $11,422,077 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.82% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Woodward

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Voya Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Woodward by 4.9% in the first quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 8,976 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $1,638,000 after purchasing an additional 416 shares during the period. Strs Ohio bought a new position in shares of Woodward during the 1st quarter worth $1,199,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Woodward by 684.3% during the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 5,043 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $920,000 after buying an additional 4,400 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Woodward by 0.5% during the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 45,928 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $8,381,000 after buying an additional 216 shares during the period. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth raised its holdings in shares of Woodward by 35.5% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 2,390 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $436,000 after acquiring an additional 626 shares in the last quarter. 81.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.