Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) Receives $298.78 Average Price Target from Brokerages

Shares of Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $298.7778.

WWD has been the topic of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Woodward in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $350.00 price target on shares of Woodward in a research report on Monday, December 1st. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Woodward from $329.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Wolfe Research set a $300.00 target price on shares of Woodward and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Woodward from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director John D. Cohn sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $296.33, for a total transaction of $888,990.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 21,575 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,393,319.75. This represents a 12.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Thomas G. Cromwell sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $297.88, for a total value of $1,489,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 15,135 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,508,413.80. This represents a 24.83% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 40,000 shares of company stock valued at $11,908,210. Insiders own 0.71% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Woodward

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake in Woodward by 27.9% in the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 463 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $117,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc increased its position in Woodward by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,036 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $267,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd raised its holdings in Woodward by 80.0% in the 3rd quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 2,769 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $700,000 after purchasing an additional 1,231 shares in the last quarter. Harvest Investment Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Woodward in the 3rd quarter worth about $2,340,000. Finally, CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co boosted its stake in shares of Woodward by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 35,704 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $8,781,000 after purchasing an additional 915 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.18% of the company’s stock.

Woodward Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of WWD opened at $311.38 on Thursday. Woodward has a fifty-two week low of $146.82 and a fifty-two week high of $317.56. The firm has a market cap of $18.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.31, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.02. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $280.54 and a 200-day moving average price of $259.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a current ratio of 2.08.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 24th. The technology company reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.26. The company had revenue of $995.26 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $943.15 million. Woodward had a net margin of 12.39% and a return on equity of 17.68%. The firm’s revenue was up 16.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.41 EPS. Woodward has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.500-8.000 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Woodward will post 6.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Woodward declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, November 20th that permits the company to repurchase $1.80 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the technology company to buy up to 11.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Woodward Company Profile

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.