Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) Hits New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $411.09 and last traded at $410.4860, with a volume of 18144 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $402.50.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on WWD. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Woodward from $404.00 to $415.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Woodward in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Susquehanna started coverage on Woodward in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. They set a “positive” rating and a $423.00 price target on the stock. Zacks Research downgraded Woodward from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on Woodward in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $450.00 price target on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $393.00.

Woodward Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.73. The company has a market capitalization of $25.91 billion, a PE ratio of 52.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.89. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $371.70 and its 200-day simple moving average is $354.18.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The technology company reported $2.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.10 by $0.17. Woodward had a net margin of 12.85% and a return on equity of 20.12%. The company had revenue of $1.09 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.69 EPS. Woodward’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.4% on a year-over-year basis. Woodward has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.150-9.450 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Woodward, Inc. will post 9.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Woodward Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st were paid a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 21st. Woodward’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.33%.

Insider Activity at Woodward

In other Woodward news, Director Daniel G. Korte sold 14,700 shares of Woodward stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $356.05, for a total value of $5,233,935.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 4,434 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,578,725.70. This trade represents a 76.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Karrie M. Bem sold 280 shares of Woodward stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $372.66, for a total value of $104,344.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 4,297 shares in the company, valued at $1,601,320.02. This trade represents a 6.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 15,629 shares of company stock worth $5,570,005 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.71% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Woodward

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Woodward in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Woodward by 82.5% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 115 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Woodward in the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Woodward in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Woodward in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $61,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.18% of the company’s stock.

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.