Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) Reaches New 12-Month Low – Here’s What Happened

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) hit a new 52-week low on Friday . The stock traded as low as $44.51 and last traded at $45.42, with a volume of 128544 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $48.00.

Westamerica Bancorporation Trading Down 5.4 %

The firm has a market cap of $1.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.73 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.27 and a quick ratio of 0.26. The business has a 50-day moving average of $50.57 and a 200-day moving average of $52.01.

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.19. Westamerica Bancorporation had a return on equity of 16.15% and a net margin of 44.55%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.48 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Westamerica Bancorporation will post 4.35 EPS for the current year.

Westamerica Bancorporation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.88%. Westamerica Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.85%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Westamerica Bancorporation

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WABC. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Westamerica Bancorporation by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,505,495 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $183,898,000 after acquiring an additional 34,762 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 875,300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $45,919,000 after purchasing an additional 9,928 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 753,088 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,515,000 after buying an additional 17,649 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 17.7% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 393,998 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $20,669,000 after buying an additional 59,325 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 18.6% during the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 334,637 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $17,555,000 after buying an additional 52,399 shares during the period. 81.89% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Westamerica Bancorporation Company Profile

Westamerica Bancorporation operates as a bank holding company for the Westamerica Bank that provides various banking products and services to individual and commercial customers. The company accepts various deposit products, including retail savings and checking accounts, as well as certificates of deposit.