Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) Shares Gap Down – Time to Sell?

Shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $80.74, but opened at $71.25. Western Alliance Bancorporation shares last traded at $69.64, with a volume of 1,150,771 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WAL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $105.00 price target (up from $100.00) on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a report on Monday, December 29th. TD Cowen reduced their target price on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $109.00 to $108.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Citigroup upped their price target on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $104.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Western Alliance Bancorporation from $98.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $103.73.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Down 14.8%

The stock has a market capitalization of $7.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 1.34. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $88.84 and a 200 day moving average of $85.31. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $2.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.19. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a net margin of 18.04% and a return on equity of 13.33%. The company had revenue of $890.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $912.69 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.95 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 17.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 9.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Investors of record on Friday, February 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 20th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s payout ratio is 19.24%.

Institutional Trading of Western Alliance Bancorporation

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of WAL. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in the 4th quarter worth about $63,000. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in Western Alliance Bancorporation in the fourth quarter worth about $456,000. Compound Planning Inc. grew its stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 3,536 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $297,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 134.9% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 39,056 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,283,000 after buying an additional 22,431 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV acquired a new stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,138,000. 79.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Western Alliance Bancorporation

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.