Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) Sets New 12-Month High on Strong Earnings

Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The company traded as high as $169.99 and last traded at $164.66, with a volume of 374686 shares. The stock had previously closed at $151.07.

The technology company reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.34. The firm had revenue of $835.34 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $807.04 million. Woodward had a net margin of 11.09% and a return on equity of 16.92%. The business’s revenue was up 16.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.01 earnings per share.

Woodward Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 5th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 22nd will be issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 21st. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.60%. Woodward’s payout ratio is presently 17.48%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on WWD shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Woodward from $156.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. StockNews.com cut shares of Woodward from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Woodward from $168.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Woodward from $143.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on shares of Woodward from $182.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $163.89.

Insider Activity

In other Woodward news, Director John D. Cohn sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.86, for a total value of $208,290.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 20,531 shares in the company, valued at $2,850,934.66. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Woodward news, EVP Christopher Fawzy sold 11,000 shares of Woodward stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total value of $1,540,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 4,836 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $677,040. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director John D. Cohn sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.86, for a total value of $208,290.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 20,531 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,850,934.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 51,200 shares of company stock valued at $7,242,916 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.12% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Woodward by 34.7% during the 1st quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 268 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC raised its position in Woodward by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 28,230 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $3,843,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its stake in Woodward by 22.8% in the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 491 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $67,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in shares of Woodward by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 28,741 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $4,430,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the period. Finally, State of Michigan Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Woodward by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 14,510 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,975,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.18% of the company’s stock.

Woodward Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $10.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.00, a PEG ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.36. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $148.50 and its 200-day moving average price is $138.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.69 and a current ratio of 2.65.

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.