Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) Upgraded to Buy at Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft

Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD - Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report report published on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has $291.00 price target on the technology company's stock.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Woodward from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. UBS Group increased their price target on Woodward from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Woodward from $175.00 to $193.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Truist Financial set a $232.00 price objective on Woodward in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $245.00 target price (up from $225.00) on shares of Woodward in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Woodward presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $217.75.

Woodward Stock Down 0.5%

Woodward stock traded down $1.18 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $233.33. 417,617 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 468,731. The company has a market cap of $13.85 billion, a PE ratio of 39.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.24. Woodward has a fifty-two week low of $145.98 and a fifty-two week high of $235.23. The company's fifty day moving average price is $190.60 and its 200-day moving average price is $184.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 1.89 and a quick ratio of 1.19.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The technology company reported $1.69 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.25. The business had revenue of $883.63 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $838.61 million. Woodward had a net margin of 11.18% and a return on equity of 16.76%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.62 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Woodward will post 6.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Woodward Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 22nd. Woodward's dividend payout ratio is presently 18.09%.

Insider Transactions at Woodward

In other Woodward news, Director John D. Cohn sold 2,800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.52, for a total transaction of $536,256.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 20,965 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,015,216.80. This represents 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 available at the SEC website. Also, COO Thomas G. Cromwell sold 10,000 shares of Woodward 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 completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 15,477 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,855,506.50. This trade represents a 39.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 46,100 shares of company stock worth $9,134,144. 0.82% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Woodward

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its stake in Woodward by 191.2% in the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 166 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. lifted its holdings 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 worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of 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. TCTC Holdings LLC boosted its position in Woodward by 116.7% during the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 182 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Finally, NBT Bank N A NY bought a new position in Woodward during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Institutional investors own 81.18% of the company's stock.

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.