American Century Companies Inc. Has $44.53 Million Stock Holdings in Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE:WD)

American Century Companies Inc. reduced its position in Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE:WD) by 6.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 458,094 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 33,936 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. owned about 1.36% of Walker & Dunlop worth $44,531,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WD. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its position in Walker & Dunlop by 42.2% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 391 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Walker & Dunlop by 230.8% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 751 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $72,000 after buying an additional 524 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its stake in shares of Walker & Dunlop by 33.6% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,607 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $156,000 after buying an additional 404 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in shares of Walker & Dunlop during the 4th quarter worth about $178,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC grew its stake in Walker & Dunlop by 42.9% in the 4th quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 2,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $194,000 after buying an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. 80.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walker & Dunlop

In related news, CEO William M. Walker purchased 17,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $86.21 per share, for a total transaction of $1,508,675.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 411,271 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $35,455,672.91. This trade represents a 4.44 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 3.66% of the company’s stock.

Walker & Dunlop Stock Performance

WD opened at $85.42 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $89.19 and a 200-day moving average of $100.40. Walker & Dunlop, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $81.07 and a fifty-two week high of $118.19. The company has a market capitalization of $2.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.78 and a beta of 1.63.

Walker & Dunlop (NYSE:WD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The financial services provider reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.52 by ($0.18). Walker & Dunlop had a net margin of 9.55% and a return on equity of 9.64%. The business had revenue of $341.45 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $316.82 million. On average, equities research analysts predict that Walker & Dunlop, Inc. will post 4.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walker & Dunlop Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $0.67 per share. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.14%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This is a positive change from Walker & Dunlop’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. Walker & Dunlop’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 84.01%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Walker & Dunlop from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday, March 6th.

Walker & Dunlop Company Profile

Walker & Dunlop, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the provision of commercial real estate and finance services. It operates through the following segments: Capital Markets, Servicing and Asset Management, and Corporate. The Capital Markets segment offers a comprehensive range of commercial real estate finance products to customers.