Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) Shares Sold by MML Investors Services LLC

MML Investors Services LLC trimmed its position in shares of Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) by 29.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,887 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 4,960 shares during the quarter. MML Investors Services LLC’s holdings in Woodward were worth $2,039,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Woodward by 4.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,421,483 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $415,309,000 after buying an additional 110,569 shares during the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Woodward by 2.6% during the 2nd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,380,384 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $240,711,000 after purchasing an additional 34,946 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. lifted its position in Woodward by 13.3% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 634,698 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $110,679,000 after buying an additional 74,734 shares during the period. Naya Capital Management UK Ltd. acquired a new stake in Woodward in the 3rd quarter worth about $99,000,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of Woodward by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 541,496 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $94,426,000 after acquiring an additional 16,083 shares during the last quarter. 81.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Woodward Price Performance

WWD stock opened at $174.72 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $171.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $170.73. The firm has a market cap of $10.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.89. Woodward, Inc. has a 1 year low of $131.12 and a 1 year high of $201.64.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 25th. The technology company reported $1.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.22 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $855.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $810.39 million. Woodward had a net margin of 11.22% and a return on equity of 17.13%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.33 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Woodward, Inc. will post 5.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Woodward Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st were given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.57%. Woodward’s payout ratio is currently 16.64%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Woodward from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating and set a $160.00 price objective (down from $186.00) on shares of Woodward in a research note on Friday, October 4th. UBS Group increased their target price on Woodward from $209.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $226.00 price target (up previously from $187.00) on shares of Woodward in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Woodward from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $187.44.

Insider Activity

In other Woodward news, Director John D. Cohn sold 2,400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.57, for a total transaction of $430,968.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 20,963 shares in the company, valued at $3,764,325.91. This represents a 10.27 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, COO Thomas G. Cromwell sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.50, for a total transaction of $1,745,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 11,511 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,008,669.50. The trade was a 46.49 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 60,313 shares of company stock worth $10,752,072 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.12% of the company’s stock.

Woodward Profile

Woodward, Inc designs, manufactures, and services control solutions for the aerospace and industrial markets worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Aerospace and Industrial. The Aerospace segment provides fuel pumps, metering units, actuators, air valves, specialty valves, fuel nozzles, and thrust reverser actuation systems for turbine engines and nacelles, and flight deck controls, actuators, servocontrols, motors, and sensors for aircraft.