Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD – Free Report) by 27.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,692 shares of the technology company’s stock after buying an additional 2,509 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Woodward were worth $4,185,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WWD. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Woodward in the 4th quarter worth approximately $251,365,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Woodward by 122.0% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 905,578 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $228,849,000 after acquiring an additional 497,722 shares in the last quarter. Findlay Park Partners LLP increased its stake in shares of Woodward by 136.2% during the fourth quarter. Findlay Park Partners LLP now owns 686,200 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $207,452,000 after acquiring an additional 395,726 shares during the period. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership raised its holdings in Woodward by 45.7% during the fourth quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 1,065,294 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $322,060,000 after purchasing an additional 334,333 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP raised its holdings in Woodward by 1,086.9% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 330,514 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $83,524,000 after purchasing an additional 302,666 shares in the last quarter. 81.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on WWD shares. Susquehanna began coverage on Woodward in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. They issued a “positive” rating and a $423.00 target price for the company. Zacks Research raised Woodward from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Wall Street Zen lowered Woodward from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and issued a $470.00 price objective on shares of Woodward in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on Woodward from $427.00 to $429.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Woodward presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $406.45.
Woodward Stock Down 2.0%
WWD stock opened at $365.78 on Friday. Woodward, Inc. has a 12 month low of $233.31 and a 12 month high of $450.92. The firm has a market cap of $21.60 billion, a PE ratio of 40.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.88. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $396.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $378.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.65 and a quick ratio of 1.14.
Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD – Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The technology company reported $2.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $1.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.11 billion. Woodward had a net margin of 13.17% and a return on equity of 21.89%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.76 earnings per share. Woodward has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.300-9.500 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Woodward, Inc. will post 9.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Woodward Announces Dividend
The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Woodward’s payout ratio is presently 14.24%.
Insider Transactions at Woodward
In other news, EVP Karrie M. Bem sold 185 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.00, for a total transaction of $65,675.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 3,648 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,295,040. The trade was a 4.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Daniel G. Korte sold 14,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.05, for a total value of $5,233,935.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 4,434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,578,725.70. This represents a 76.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 17,779 shares of company stock valued at $6,337,168 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.71% of the company’s stock.
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.
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