StockNews.com Upgrades Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) to Hold

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Thursday.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on WABC. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Westamerica Bancorporation from $50.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Maxim Group lowered Westamerica Bancorporation from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $57.00.

Westamerica Bancorporation Price Performance

NASDAQ:WABC opened at $51.80 on Thursday. Westamerica Bancorporation has a 12-month low of $43.82 and a 12-month high of $58.49. The firm has a market cap of $1.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.44 and a beta of 0.55. The company’s 50-day moving average is $49.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $49.32. The company has a current ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $79.57 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $74.28 million. Westamerica Bancorporation had a net margin of 45.73% and a return on equity of 18.32%. Research analysts expect that Westamerica Bancorporation will post 5.2 EPS for the current year.

Westamerica Bancorporation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 5th were issued a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.40%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 5th. Westamerica Bancorporation’s payout ratio is currently 32.06%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Westamerica Bancorporation

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Kimelman & Baird LLC acquired a new position in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation during the 2nd quarter valued at $36,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new position in Westamerica Bancorporation in the first quarter valued at about $75,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 13.8% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,862 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $90,000 after purchasing an additional 226 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation during the first quarter worth about $113,000. Finally, SageView Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation in the first quarter worth about $140,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.89% of the company’s stock.

About Westamerica Bancorporation

Westamerica Bancorporation operates as a bank holding company for the Westamerica Bank that provides various banking products and services to individual and commercial customers. The company accepts various deposit products, including retail savings and checking accounts, as well as certificates of deposit.