Sanctuary Advisors LLC Buys Shares of 8,528 Woodward, Inc. $WWD

Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 8,528 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,628,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Woodward in the second quarter valued at about $2,984,684,000. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Woodward by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,388,758 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $603,663,000 after buying an additional 80,538 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Woodward by 7.7% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,491,870 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $451,093,000 after buying an additional 106,390 shares during the period. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership increased its stake in shares of Woodward by 45.7% in the 4th quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 1,065,294 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $322,060,000 after acquiring an additional 334,333 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Woodward by 8.5% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 982,448 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $297,014,000 after acquiring an additional 76,870 shares during the last quarter. 81.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Woodward

In related news, EVP Shawn M. Mclevige sold 2,150 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.82, for a total transaction of $767,163.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 3,098 shares in the company, valued at $1,105,428.36. This trade represents a 40.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Daniel G. Korte sold 14,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.05, for a total transaction of $5,233,935.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 4,434 shares in the company, valued at $1,578,725.70. This represents a 76.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.71% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on WWD shares. Zacks Research lowered shares of Woodward from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $470.00 target price on shares of Woodward in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Woodward in a report on Friday, July 17th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Woodward from $415.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Woodward from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $419.00.

Woodward Trading Up 2.0%

NASDAQ WWD opened at $339.66 on Wednesday. Woodward, Inc. has a one year low of $233.31 and a one year high of $450.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.65 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The firm has a market cap of $20.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.88. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $392.84 and its 200-day moving average is $380.53.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The technology company reported $2.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.44 by $0.08. Woodward had a return on equity of 21.89% and a net margin of 13.17%.The business had revenue of $1.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.11 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.76 EPS. Woodward’s quarterly revenue was up 21.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Woodward has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.300-9.500 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Woodward, Inc. will post 9.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Woodward Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Woodward’s dividend payout ratio is 14.24%.

Woodward 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.