Western Alliance Bancorporation Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:WAL)

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) was the target of some unusual options trading on Friday. Traders bought 9,656 put options on the company. This represents an increase of 68% compared to the typical volume of 5,738 put options.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Price Performance

NYSE:WAL opened at $57.44 on Friday. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 52 week low of $11.35 and a 52 week high of $70.23. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The company has a market capitalization of $6.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.37 and a beta of 1.47. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $59.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $56.51.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last posted its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The financial services provider reported $1.72 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.03. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a return on equity of 14.99% and a net margin of 16.50%. The company had revenue of $1.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $711.34 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.30 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 7.88 EPS for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 16th were given a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 15th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.58%. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wedbush lowered their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. StockNews.com lowered Western Alliance Bancorporation from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 9th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $80.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $82.00 price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research note on Friday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $78.00 price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $71.36.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Western Alliance Bancorporation

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 44.4% in the 1st quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,056,477 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $144,167,000 after buying an additional 1,246,855 shares during the period. Smead Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in the 4th quarter valued at $77,957,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 4th quarter worth about $68,940,000. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 489.0% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,333,881 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $61,320,000 after purchasing an additional 1,107,431 shares during the period. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. purchased a new stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 1st quarter worth about $32,430,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.15% of the company’s stock.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Company Profile

Western Alliance Bancorporation operates as the bank holding company for Western Alliance Bank that provides various banking products and related services primarily in Arizona, California, and Nevada. It operates through Commercial and Consumer Related segments. The company offers deposit products, including checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as fixed-rate and fixed maturity certificates of deposit accounts; demand deposits; and treasury management and residential mortgage products and services.