Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) Price Target Raised to $260.00

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) had its target price upped by Barclays from $200.00 to $260.00 in a research report report published on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the technology company’s stock.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on WWD. Northcoast Research raised shares of Woodward to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Woodward from $229.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Woodward from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $291.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Woodward from $175.00 to $193.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Woodward from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $249.63.

Woodward Stock Performance

Shares of WWD stock opened at $251.70 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $245.30 and a 200 day moving average of $206.76. Woodward has a 52 week low of $146.82 and a 52 week high of $267.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.83, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 28th. The technology company reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.14. Woodward had a net margin of 11.32% and a return on equity of 16.57%. The business had revenue of $915.45 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $884.98 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.63 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Woodward will post 6.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Woodward Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 21st will be paid a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Woodward’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Woodward news, EVP Terence J. Voskuil sold 10,000 shares of Woodward stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.03, for a total transaction of $2,310,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 4,945 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,142,443.35. The trade was a 66.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Charles P. Blankenship sold 2,450 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.85, for a total value of $565,582.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 64,739 shares in the company, valued at $14,944,998.15. This trade represents a 3.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 39,296 shares of company stock worth $8,711,033 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Woodward

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its holdings in shares of Woodward by 191.2% in the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 166 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Woodward by 2,314.3% during the first quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 169 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Woodward by 189.8% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 171 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC increased its holdings in Woodward by 116.7% in the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 182 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Virtus Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Woodward in the 1st quarter worth about $38,000. 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.