Artisan Partners Limited Partnership Buys 334,333 Shares of Woodward, Inc. $WWD

Artisan Partners Limited Partnership raised its stake in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) by 45.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,065,294 shares of the technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 334,333 shares during the quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership’s holdings in Woodward were worth $322,060,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Woodline Partners LP bought a new stake in shares of Woodward during the first quarter worth about $2,039,000. Focus Partners Wealth increased its position in shares of Woodward by 35.5% during the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 2,390 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $436,000 after acquiring an additional 626 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Woodward by 684.3% during the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 5,043 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $920,000 after acquiring an additional 4,400 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in shares of Woodward by 7.0% during the second quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 4,030 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $988,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its position in shares of Woodward by 11.9% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 506 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $124,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. 81.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Woodward Trading Up 4.7%

Shares of WWD stock opened at $421.54 on Wednesday. Woodward, Inc. has a 52-week low of $233.31 and a 52-week high of $425.33. 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 50-day simple moving average of $370.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $353.21. The company has a market capitalization of $25.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.48, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.89.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.17. Woodward had a net margin of 12.85% and a return on equity of 20.12%. 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 prior year, the firm posted $1.69 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 23.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Woodward has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.150-9.450 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Woodward, Inc. will post 9.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Woodward Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 21st were given a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 21st. Woodward’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Woodward from $404.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Susquehanna assumed coverage on shares of Woodward in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. They set a “positive” rating and a $423.00 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Woodward from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and set a $470.00 target price on shares of Woodward in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada assumed coverage on shares of Woodward in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $450.00 target price for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $393.00.

Insider Transactions at Woodward

In other Woodward news, Director Daniel G. Korte sold 14,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.05, for a total value of $5,233,935.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 4,434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,578,725.70. This represents a 76.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Karrie M. Bem sold 185 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.00, for a total transaction of $65,675.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 3,648 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,295,040. The trade was a 4.83% 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 valued at $5,570,005 over the last ninety days. 0.71% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Woodward 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.