Analysts Set Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) Price Target at $87.40

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) has received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and thirteen have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $87.87.

Several research analysts have issued reports on WAL shares. StockNews.com cut Western Alliance Bancorporation from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $62.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $82.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $80.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $78.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WAL opened at $83.76 on Wednesday. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 12 month low of $38.81 and a 12 month high of $88.92. The stock has a market cap of $9.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.21, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.44. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $79.91 and its 200 day moving average price is $68.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.71 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $771.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $737.97 million. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a return on equity of 13.98% and a net margin of 15.54%. The firm’s revenue was up 15.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.96 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 7.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.57%.

Insider Activity at Western Alliance Bancorporation

In related news, insider Barbara Kennedy sold 11,083 shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.59, for a total value of $904,261.97. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 7,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $650,843.43. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CAO J. Kelly Jr. Ardrey sold 2,116 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.95, for a total transaction of $160,710.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,520 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $267,344. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Barbara Kennedy sold 11,083 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.59, for a total transaction of $904,261.97. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $650,843.43. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 21,265 shares of company stock valued at $1,700,391. Insiders own 2.75% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation during the first quarter worth about $27,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 57.4% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 502 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC bought a new stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation during the second quarter worth about $36,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation during the second quarter worth about $54,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 26.5% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,165 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $73,000 after buying an additional 244 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.15% of the company’s stock.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Company Profile

Western Alliance Bancorporation operates as the bank holding company for Western Alliance Bank that provides various banking products and related services primarily in Arizona, California, and Nevada. It operates through Commercial and Consumer Related segments. The company offers deposit products, including checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as fixed-rate and fixed maturity certificates of deposit accounts; demand deposits; and treasury management and residential mortgage products and services.