Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) Hits New 12-Month High on Analyst Upgrade

Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday after Melius upgraded the stock from a hold rating to a buy rating. The company traded as high as $319.75 and last traded at $321.8270, with a volume of 94130 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $310.86.

WWD has been the topic of a number of other reports. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $350.00 price objective on shares of Woodward in a report on Monday, December 1st. Wolfe Research set a $300.00 price target on Woodward and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Woodward from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Woodward from $360.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Woodward from $329.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $298.78.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Thomas G. Cromwell sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $297.88, for a total transaction of $1,489,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 15,135 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,508,413.80. This trade represents a 24.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Gregg C. Sengstack sold 7,000 shares of Woodward stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.76, for a total transaction of $2,105,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 9,610 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,890,303.60. This trade represents a 42.14% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 40,000 shares of company stock valued at $11,908,210 in the last 90 days. 0.71% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Woodward

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WWD. Argent Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Woodward during the 4th quarter valued at about $3,208,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Woodward by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 9,864 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,982,000 after buying an additional 306 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in Woodward by 27.9% during 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 last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc raised its holdings in Woodward by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,036 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $267,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Finally, 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 valued at $700,000 after acquiring an additional 1,231 shares during the last quarter. 81.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Woodward Stock Up 1.2%

The firm has a market cap of $19.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.34, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 2.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $287.78 and a 200-day moving average price of $263.05.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 24th. The technology company reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.83 by $0.26. The company had revenue of $995.26 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $943.15 million. Woodward had a return on equity of 17.68% and a net margin of 12.39%.The firm’s revenue was up 16.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.41 EPS. Woodward has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.500-8.000 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Woodward, Inc. will post 6.15 EPS for the current year.

Woodward declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, November 20th that allows the company to buyback $1.80 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the technology company to purchase up to 11.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.