Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) Hits New 52-Week High on Analyst Upgrade

Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday after Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on the stock from $430.00 to $445.00. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft currently has a buy rating on the stock. Woodward traded as high as $402.95 and last traded at $398.7090, with a volume of 102563 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $388.50.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Zacks Research raised Woodward from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Woodward from $378.00 to $417.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $450.00 price target on shares of Woodward in a report on Sunday. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Woodward from $366.00 to $404.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Woodward in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $354.80.

Insider Activity at Woodward

In other news, 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 value of $2,105,320.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 9,610 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,890,303.60. The trade was a 42.14% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Eileen P. Paterson sold 5,200 shares of Woodward stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $378.15, for a total value of $1,966,380.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 2,538 shares in the company, valued at $959,744.70. The trade was a 67.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 47,450 shares of company stock worth $14,706,235 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.71% of the company’s stock.

More Woodward News

Here are the key news stories impacting Woodward this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results and guidance beat — Woodward reported $2.17 EPS (vs. $1.65 est.) and $996.5M revenue with revenue up ~29% y/y; management set FY26 EPS guidance of $8.20–$8.60, which supports upside from earnings momentum. MarketBeat: Woodward overview & earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Capital return and dividend actions — board authorized a $1.8B share buyback (~11.6% of shares) and raised the quarterly dividend to $0.32, both propping valuation and shareholder returns. MarketBeat: Buyback & dividend
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades — several firms raised targets (Deutsche Bank to $445, Goldman to $408, Truist to $404) after results, signaling more buy-side conviction and potential upside from revisions. TickerReport: Analyst target increases
• Positive Sentiment: Momentum recognition — Zacks added WWD to its Rank #1 (Strong Buy) growth list, which can attract momentum and model-driven buying. Zacks: Growth stocks list
• Neutral Sentiment: Strong YTD rally — the stock is up sharply this year (Fool notes ~50% YTD), which both reflects improving fundamentals and raises questions about near-term upside for new buyers. Fool: Upside vs. rally
• Neutral Sentiment: Technical/context — shares sit near their 50‑day and one‑year highs and institutional ownership is very high (~81%), which can limit float-driven volatility but also concentrate selling/booking of gains. MarketBeat: Stock data
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling — Director Eileen Paterson sold 5,200 shares (~$1.97M) in early February, reducing her holding by ~67%, which can be interpreted as a near-term negative signal. InsiderTrades: Director sale
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and cyclicality — WWD trades at an elevated P/E (~49x) and the business remains cyclical (aerospace exposure); those factors increase downside risk if aerospace demand or margins cool.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WWD. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new stake in Woodward in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in Woodward during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its position in Woodward by 1,766.7% in the 3rd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 112 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Financial Perspectives Inc bought a new position in shares of Woodward in the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Kilter Group LLC bought a new stake in Woodward during the 2nd quarter worth about $39,000. 81.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Woodward Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 2.05 and a quick ratio of 1.36. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $322.33 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $278.98. The company has a market capitalization of $23.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.31, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 1.00.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 2nd. The technology company reported $2.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.52. The firm had revenue of $996.45 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $901.92 million. Woodward had a net margin of 12.89% and a return on equity of 19.07%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 28.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.35 earnings per share. Woodward has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.200-8.600 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Woodward, Inc. will post 6.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Woodward Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. This is a boost from Woodward’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 19th. Woodward’s dividend payout ratio is 14.11%.

Woodward declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, November 20th that allows the company to buyback $1.80 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the technology company to reacquire up to 11.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s management 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.