Wolfe Research Upgrades Walker & Dunlop (NYSE:WD) to “Strong-Buy”

Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Walker & Dunlop (NYSE:WD) to a strong-buy rating in a research note published on Tuesday morning, Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities research analysts also recently commented on WD. StockNews.com raised shares of Walker & Dunlop from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report on Sunday, August 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Walker & Dunlop from $105.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a market perform rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Wedbush raised their target price on Walker & Dunlop from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Friday, August 9th.

Walker & Dunlop Stock Down 1.4 %

Walker & Dunlop stock opened at $112.06 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.78 billion, a PE ratio of 40.90 and a beta of 1.55. Walker & Dunlop has a 12-month low of $62.51 and a 12-month high of $116.26. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $105.82 and its 200 day moving average is $99.11.

Walker & Dunlop (NYSE:WD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The financial services provider reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.16 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $270.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $274.50 million. Walker & Dunlop had a net margin of 8.41% and a return on equity of 9.65%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.98 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Walker & Dunlop will post 5.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walker & Dunlop Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 22nd were given a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 22nd. Walker & Dunlop’s dividend payout ratio is 94.89%.

Insider Activity

In other Walker & Dunlop news, COO Stephen P. Theobald sold 13,870 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.10, for a total transaction of $1,471,607.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 53,869 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,715,500.90. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 5.47% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WD. National Bank of Canada FI grew its holdings in Walker & Dunlop by 205.6% during the 2nd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 275 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Walker & Dunlop during the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. increased its holdings in Walker & Dunlop by 163.6% during the 1st quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 398 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 247 shares during the period. EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new stake in Walker & Dunlop during the 1st quarter worth approximately $57,000. Finally, Asset Dedication LLC purchased a new stake in Walker & Dunlop in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $94,000. 80.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Walker & Dunlop Company Profile

Walker & Dunlop, Inc, through its subsidiaries, originates, sells, and services a range of multifamily and other commercial real estate financing products and services for owners and developers of real estate in the United States. It operates through three segments: Capital Markets, Servicing & Asset Management, and Corporate.