World Equity Group Inc. Purchases New Position in Woodward, Inc. $WWD

World Equity Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 1,799 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $544,000.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. AlphaQuest LLC lifted its stake in shares of Woodward by 300.8% in the 3rd quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 6,766 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,710,000 after purchasing an additional 5,078 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its holdings in Woodward by 35.6% during the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 25,688 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $6,300,000 after buying an additional 6,741 shares in the last quarter. Syntax Research Inc. acquired a new stake in Woodward during the third quarter valued at $1,011,000. Allianz Asset Management GmbH acquired a new stake in Woodward during the third quarter valued at $12,300,000. Finally, Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp purchased a new position in Woodward in the third quarter valued at $878,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on WWD. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Woodward from $350.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Woodward from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 10th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Woodward in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Melius Research upgraded Woodward from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on Woodward from $430.00 to $445.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $354.80.

Woodward Stock Up 0.8%

WWD stock opened at $372.08 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.96. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $367.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $306.97. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 2.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Woodward, Inc. has a 52 week low of $146.82 and a 52 week high of $403.31.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 2nd. The technology company reported $2.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.52. Woodward had a net margin of 12.89% and a return on equity of 19.07%. The firm had revenue of $996.45 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $901.92 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.35 EPS. Woodward’s quarterly revenue was up 28.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Woodward has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.200-8.600 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Woodward, Inc. will post 6.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Woodward Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 19th were given a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. This is a boost from Woodward’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 19th. Woodward’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.12%.

Insider Transactions at Woodward

In related news, Director John D. Cohn sold 2,250 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $369.62, for a total value of $831,645.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 21,575 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,974,551.50. This represents a 9.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Shawn M. Mclevige sold 1,850 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $384.37, for a total value of $711,084.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 3,095 shares in the company, valued at $1,189,625.15. The trade was a 37.41% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 26,925 shares of company stock worth $10,203,160. 0.71% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Woodward Company Profile

Woodward, Inc (NASDAQ: WWD) is a global leader in the design, manufacture and service of control systems and components for the aerospace and industrial markets. Founded in 1870 and headquartered in Fort Collins, Colorado, the company specializes in motion control, fuel systems, actuation, and digital control solutions. Its offerings enable precision management of flow, pressure and motion in critical applications ranging from aircraft engines and power turbines to hydraulic systems.

Woodward’s product portfolio is organized into two primary segments: Aerospace and Industrial.