Fifth Third Bancorp Buys 24,695 Shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation $WAL

Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) by 6,023.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 25,105 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 24,695 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation were worth $1,779,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WAL. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 635.0% in the first quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 48,366 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,409,000 after buying an additional 41,786 shares in the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 2.5% during the first quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 21,106 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,495,000 after buying an additional 506 shares in the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in the 1st quarter valued at $235,000. Baer Investment Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 1st quarter valued at $270,000. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 1st quarter valued at $1,840,000. 79.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Trading Up 3.4%

Shares of WAL stock opened at $83.28 on Thursday. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 1-year low of $65.82 and a 1-year high of $97.23. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. The stock has a market cap of $9.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.38, a PEG ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.34. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $80.26 and a 200-day moving average of $81.22.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.36 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a return on equity of 13.52% and a net margin of 17.20%.The company had revenue of $995.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $980.53 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.07 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 14th were given a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 14th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s payout ratio is 18.92%.

Key Stories Impacting Western Alliance Bancorporation

Here are the key news stories impacting Western Alliance Bancorporation this week:

• Positive Sentiment: DA Davidson reaffirmed its Buy rating on Western Alliance Bancorporation and raised its price target to $90, implying additional upside from recent trading levels.
• Positive Sentiment: Regional bank earnings have broadly improved sentiment across the group, with reports of strong revenue, loan growth, deposit growth, and solid capital positions helping support Western Alliance shares.
• Positive Sentiment: Western Alliance’s quarterly revenue beat expectations and rose sharply year over year, suggesting its core banking business remains healthy despite market worries.
• Neutral Sentiment: Some coverage highlighted that Western Alliance’s earnings may have missed certain consensus estimates on EPS, which could temper enthusiasm even as investors focus on the broader operational strength.
• Neutral Sentiment: Several transcript and earnings-snapshot articles from the last day largely reinforce the same takeaway: the company is still being closely watched for credit trends and deposit stability after recent bank-sector volatility.

Insider Activity at Western Alliance Bancorporation

In other news, CAO Ben Mucha sold 5,946 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.00, for a total transaction of $481,626.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 3,485 shares in the company, valued at $282,285. This represents a 63.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 2.76% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on WAL shares. UBS Group upped their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Weiss Ratings raised Western Alliance Bancorporation from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $86.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $93.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $94.00.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Company Profile

Western Alliance Bancorporation is a bank holding company headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona. Through its principal subsidiary, Western Alliance Bank, the company provides a range of banking services to commercial clients, entrepreneurs and real estate developers. As one of the largest regional banks in the western United States, it focuses on relationship-driven banking solutions tailored to niche industries and growing businesses.

The company’s core offerings include deposit products, treasury management and a variety of lending services.