Norges Bank Takes Position in Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC)

Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 67,946 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,564,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 735,439 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $36,352,000 after acquiring an additional 28,902 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 144,864 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,600,000 after buying an additional 5,368 shares during the last quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation in the 4th quarter valued at about $245,000. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 103.8% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 52,755 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,606,000 after buying an additional 26,871 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in Westamerica Bancorporation by 68.0% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 81,459 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,026,000 after acquiring an additional 32,981 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.89% of the company’s stock.

Westamerica Bancorporation Trading Down 4.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:WABC opened at $44.24 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.18 billion, a PE ratio of 8.51 and a beta of 0.63. Westamerica Bancorporation has a 12-month low of $42.84 and a 12-month high of $59.97. The business has a 50 day moving average of $49.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $51.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15.

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19. Westamerica Bancorporation had a net margin of 44.55% and a return on equity of 16.15%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.48 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Westamerica Bancorporation will post 4.35 EPS for the current year.

Westamerica Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd were issued a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.98%. Westamerica Bancorporation’s payout ratio is 33.85%.

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.