Franklin Resources Inc. Buys 53,013 Shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL)

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) by 16.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 367,985 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 53,013 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation were worth $30,741,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 12.2% in the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 215,649 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $18,015,000 after purchasing an additional 23,374 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 14.6% in the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 10,965 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $916,000 after buying an additional 1,393 shares during the period. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC boosted its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 55.7% during the fourth quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 1,814,745 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $151,604,000 after acquiring an additional 648,983 shares during the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group grew its holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 12.8% during the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 312,747 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,136,000 after acquiring an additional 35,508 shares during the period. Finally, DnB Asset Management AS raised its position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 23.8% in the 4th quarter. DnB Asset Management AS now owns 192,687 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $16,097,000 after acquiring an additional 36,984 shares in the last quarter. 79.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group initiated coverage on Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $115.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $102.00 to $95.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. DA Davidson lowered their price objective on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $110.00 to $106.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $110.00 to $105.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $115.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Western Alliance Bancorporation currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $98.07.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Performance

Shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation stock opened at $61.95 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $6.84 billion, a PE ratio of 8.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 52 week low of $53.75 and a 52 week high of $98.10. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $82.44 and a 200-day moving average price of $85.63.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.95 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.92 by $0.03. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a return on equity of 13.14% and a net margin of 15.49%. Equities analysts anticipate that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $0.38 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.45%. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.41%.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Company Profile

Western Alliance Bancorporation operates as the bank holding company for Western Alliance Bank that provides various banking products and related services primarily in Arizona, California, and Nevada. It operates through Commercial and Consumer Related segments. The company offers deposit products, including checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as fixed-rate and fixed maturity certificates of deposit accounts; demand deposits; and treasury management and residential mortgage products and services.