West Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WTBA) Reaches New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

West Bancorporation, Inc. (NASDAQ:WTBA) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Friday. The company traded as high as $30.50 and last traded at $29.8650, with a volume of 15997 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $28.88.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on WTBA. Wall Street Zen downgraded West Bancorporation from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of West Bancorporation in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Hovde Group lifted their price target on shares of West Bancorporation from $25.50 to $28.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of West Bancorporation from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, West Bancorporation has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $29.00.

West Bancorporation Stock Up 3.5%

The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $28.77 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $26.13. The company has a market capitalization of $509.19 million, a P/E ratio of 13.42 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33.

West Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WTBA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $28.22 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.15 million. West Bancorporation had a net margin of 18.75% and a return on equity of 15.48%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.47 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that West Bancorporation, Inc. will post 2.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

West Bancorporation Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 5th were given a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 5th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. This is a positive change from West Bancorporation’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. West Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.64%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in WTBA. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in West Bancorporation by 4.2% during the second quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 11,186 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $297,000 after buying an additional 448 shares in the last quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in West Bancorporation by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 404,427 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,974,000 after acquiring an additional 1,763 shares in the last quarter. Independent Wealth Network Inc. raised its holdings in West Bancorporation by 42.0% in the 1st quarter. Independent Wealth Network Inc. now owns 14,698 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $350,000 after acquiring an additional 4,345 shares in the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its holdings in West Bancorporation by 28.8% in the 1st quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 34,480 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $820,000 after acquiring an additional 7,702 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC lifted its position in shares of West Bancorporation by 332.0% in the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 36,548 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $970,000 after acquiring an additional 28,087 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 44.30% of the company’s stock.

West Bancorporation Company Profile

West Bancorporation, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in West Des Moines, Iowa. Its principal subsidiary, West Bank, is a community bank that provides financial services to businesses, individuals and institutions.

West Bank offers commercial and industrial lending, commercial real estate loans, agricultural financing, residential mortgage loans and consumer credit. Its deposit products include checking, savings, money market and certificate of deposit accounts, while additional services include treasury management, online and mobile banking, cash management, trust services and investment management.

The company primarily serves customers in Iowa, including the Des Moines metropolitan area and other communities in central and eastern Iowa, as well as selected markets in neighboring states.