Natixis Advisors LLC Acquires 16,880 Shares of Woodward, Inc. $WWD

Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) by 13.0% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 146,619 shares of the technology company’s stock after buying an additional 16,880 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC’s holdings in Woodward were worth $37,052,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Woodward in the second quarter valued at about $201,555,000. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership acquired a new position in Woodward during the third quarter valued at approximately $184,721,000. Findlay Park Partners LLP bought a new position in Woodward in the third quarter valued at approximately $73,406,000. Barclays PLC grew its stake in Woodward by 198.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 274,624 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $69,400,000 after purchasing an additional 182,600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Woodward during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,617,000. Institutional investors own 81.18% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Woodward

In other news, Director Eileen P. Paterson sold 5,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $378.15, for a total value of $1,966,380.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 2,538 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $959,744.70. This represents a 67.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Thomas G. Cromwell sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $297.88, for a total transaction of $1,489,400.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 15,135 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,508,413.80. This represents a 24.83% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 29,300 shares of company stock valued at $10,281,210. Corporate insiders own 0.71% of the company’s stock.

Woodward Stock Performance

WWD opened at $384.56 on Tuesday. Woodward, Inc. has a 12-month low of $146.82 and a 12-month high of $403.31. The stock has a market cap of $22.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.43, a PEG ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.96. The business has a 50 day moving average of $355.12 and a 200-day moving average of $297.12. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 2.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 2nd. The technology company reported $2.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.52. Woodward had a return on equity of 19.07% and a net margin of 12.89%.The business had revenue of $996.45 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $901.92 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.35 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 28.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Woodward has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.200-8.600 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Woodward, Inc. will post 6.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Woodward announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Thursday, November 20th that permits the company to buyback $1.80 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the technology company to buy up to 11.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Woodward Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 19th were issued a $0.32 dividend. This is an increase from Woodward’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 19th. Woodward’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.12%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on WWD shares. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Woodward from $350.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Melius Research upgraded shares of Woodward from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Woodward from $378.00 to $417.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Woodward from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 10th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Woodward from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $354.80.

Woodward Profile

Woodward, Inc (NASDAQ: WWD) is a global leader in the design, manufacture and service of control systems and components for the aerospace and industrial markets. Founded in 1870 and headquartered in Fort Collins, Colorado, the company specializes in motion control, fuel systems, actuation, and digital control solutions. Its offerings enable precision management of flow, pressure and motion in critical applications ranging from aircraft engines and power turbines to hydraulic systems.

Woodward’s product portfolio is organized into two primary segments: Aerospace and Industrial.