Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) Stock Has Consensus Target Price of $415.17

Shares of Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the fourteen brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, nine have assigned a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $415.17.

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Woodward from $450.00 to $430.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Melius Research lowered shares of Woodward from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $388.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Monday, September 14th. Guggenheim initiated coverage on shares of Woodward in a research note on Monday, September 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $404.00 price objective on the stock. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Woodward from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Woodward from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th.

Woodward Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of WWD stock opened at $325.94 on Friday. Woodward has a fifty-two week low of $244.39 and a fifty-two week high of $450.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.25 billion, a PE ratio of 36.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.65. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $353.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $371.29.

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

Woodward Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, November 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 19th. Woodward’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.24%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Woodward news, EVP Shawn McLevige sold 2,150 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $356.82, for a total value of $767,163.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 3,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,105,428.36. The trade was a 40.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.71% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Woodward in the second quarter valued at approximately $2,984,684,000. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Woodward by 7.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,491,870 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $451,093,000 after purchasing an additional 106,390 shares in the last quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership grew its position in shares of Woodward by 45.7% in the fourth quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 1,065,294 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $322,060,000 after purchasing an additional 334,333 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in shares of Woodward by 12.5% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 904,404 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $323,705,000 after purchasing an additional 100,465 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Woodward during the fourth 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) designs and manufactures control systems and components for the aerospace and industrial markets. Its products help manage fuel, air, combustion, motion, actuation and electrical power in engines, turbines and other energy-conversion systems.

In aerospace, Woodward supplies systems and components for commercial aircraft, business aviation, military aircraft, helicopters and space applications. Its offerings include fuel metering and engine control systems, air-management products, actuators, electric power systems and other controls used in propulsion and aircraft subsystems.

Woodward also serves industrial customers with controls for power generation, gas and diesel engines, renewable-energy equipment, industrial turbines and other applications.