Woodward, Inc. $WWD Shares Sold by Bank of New York Mellon Corp

Bank of New York Mellon Corp trimmed its holdings in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) by 16.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 461,788 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 89,095 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp’s holdings in Woodward were worth $139,608,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Woodward in the 4th quarter valued at about $251,365,000. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership acquired a new position in shares of Woodward in the 3rd quarter valued at about $184,721,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Woodward by 122.0% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 905,578 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $228,849,000 after purchasing an additional 497,722 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP lifted its stake in shares of Woodward by 1,086.9% in the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 330,514 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $83,524,000 after purchasing an additional 302,666 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Findlay Park Partners LLP acquired a new position in shares of Woodward in the 3rd quarter valued at about $73,406,000. 81.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Charles P. Blankenship sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $367.40, for a total transaction of $1,837,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 65,854 shares in the company, valued at $24,194,759.60. The trade was a 7.06% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Karrie M. Bem sold 280 shares of the business’s 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 4,297 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,601,320.02. This represents a 6.12% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 8,554 shares of company stock valued at $3,183,170 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.71% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on WWD. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Woodward from $427.00 to $429.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Zacks Research downgraded Woodward from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $450.00 price objective on shares of Woodward in a report on Sunday, February 8th. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Woodward in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. They set an “overweight” rating and a $440.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and set a $470.00 price objective on shares of Woodward in a report on Friday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Woodward currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $393.00.

Woodward Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WWD opened at $357.74 on Friday. Woodward, Inc. has a twelve month low of $227.00 and a twelve month high of $407.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The company has a market capitalization of $21.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.89. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $366.95 and a 200-day simple moving average of $346.86.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The technology company reported $2.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.17. Woodward had a return on equity of 20.12% and a net margin of 12.85%.The business had revenue of $1.09 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.69 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue 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, equities research analysts expect that Woodward, Inc. will post 9.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Woodward Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st were given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. Woodward’s payout ratio is currently 15.33%.

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.