Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) Cut to “Hold” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Saturday.

WWD has been the topic of several other research reports. Susquehanna started coverage on shares of Woodward in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. They issued a “positive” rating and a $423.00 price target on the stock. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Woodward from $390.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on Woodward from $450.00 to $430.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Woodward from $415.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on Woodward from $427.00 to $429.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $406.45.

Woodward Trading Down 1.9%

Woodward stock opened at $356.11 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $21.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.61, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.88. 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 has a 1 year low of $233.31 and a 1 year high of $450.92. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $397.17 and its 200-day moving average price is $379.03.

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

Woodward Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. Woodward’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.24%.

Insider Activity

In other Woodward news, EVP Karrie M. Bem sold 185 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Daniel G. Korte sold 14,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owned 4,434 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,578,725.70. This trade represents a 76.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 17,779 shares of company stock worth $6,337,168. 0.71% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Woodward

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Woodward by 7.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,491,870 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $451,093,000 after purchasing an additional 106,390 shares during the last quarter. Arbejdsmarkedets Tillaegspension bought a new position in shares of Woodward in the fourth quarter worth about $24,436,000. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Woodward by 15.4% in the fourth quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 169,174 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $51,145,000 after purchasing an additional 22,555 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Trust Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Woodward in the fourth quarter worth about $1,164,000. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in Woodward in the 4th quarter worth about $251,365,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.18% of the company’s stock.

About Woodward

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.