Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) Sets New 12-Month High Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock traded as high as $169.99 and last traded at $164.66, with a volume of 374686 shares. The stock had previously closed at $151.07.

The technology company reported $1.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.34. Woodward had a net margin of 9.50% and a return on equity of 15.26%. The firm had revenue of $835.34 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $807.04 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.01 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 16.3% on a year-over-year basis.

Woodward Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 5th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 22nd will be given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 21st. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.61%. Woodward’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.10%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on WWD. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Woodward from $134.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Woodward from $168.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Woodward from $159.00 to $201.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Woodward from $143.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, StockNews.com cut Woodward from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Woodward has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $159.22.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director John D. Cohn sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.86, for a total transaction of $208,290.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 20,531 shares in the company, valued at $2,850,934.66. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, Director John D. Cohn sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.86, for a total transaction of $208,290.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 20,531 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,850,934.66. 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 38,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.98, for a total value of $5,494,626.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 11,833 shares in the company, valued at $1,680,049.34. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 51,200 shares of company stock worth $7,242,916 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.12% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Woodward

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Woodward by 34.7% during the first quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 268 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Woodward by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 28,230 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $3,843,000 after buying an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC increased its stake in shares of Woodward by 22.8% in the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 491 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in shares of Woodward by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 28,741 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $4,430,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the period. Finally, State of Michigan Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Woodward by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 14,510 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,975,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.18% of the company’s stock.

Woodward Trading Up 8.4 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 2.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The company’s 50-day moving average is $148.01 and its 200-day moving average is $138.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.55, a PEG ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.36.

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.