Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) is Cooke & Bieler LP’s 9th Largest Position

Cooke & Bieler LP trimmed its position in shares of Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) by 14.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,164,267 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 191,063 shares during the quarter. Woodward accounts for approximately 2.1% of Cooke & Bieler LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest position. Cooke & Bieler LP’s holdings in Woodward were worth $212,467,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its holdings in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its holdings in Woodward by 2,314.3% in the first 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 in the last quarter. Berbice Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Woodward by 50.0% in the first quarter. Berbice Capital Management LLC now owns 300 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC bought a new position in Woodward in the fourth quarter worth about $61,000. Finally, Park Square Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Woodward in the fourth quarter worth about $124,000. 81.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Randall Hobbs sold 846 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.00, for a total value of $211,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 48,981 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,245,250. This represents a 1.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Terence J. Voskuil sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.03, for a total value of $2,310,300.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 4,945 shares in the company, valued at $1,142,443.35. The trade was a 66.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 42,096 shares of company stock worth $9,247,289. Company insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

Woodward Stock Up 0.8%

Woodward stock opened at $253.64 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.95 and a quick ratio of 1.30. Woodward, Inc. has a 1-year low of $145.98 and a 1-year high of $255.69. The company has a market cap of $15.06 billion, a PE ratio of 40.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.26. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $230.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $198.56.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The technology company reported $1.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $883.63 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $838.61 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.62 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Woodward, Inc. will post 6.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Woodward Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 22nd were paid a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.44%. Woodward’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.09%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on WWD shares. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Woodward from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Woodward from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Woodward from $175.00 to $193.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Woodward from $229.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $245.00 target price (up previously from $225.00) on shares of Woodward in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Woodward currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $232.25.

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.