Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Grows Stake in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) by 189.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 171 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 112 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Woodward were worth $31,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its holdings in shares of Woodward by 191.2% during the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 166 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. boosted its holdings in Woodward by 2,314.3% during the 1st quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 169 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares during the period. TCTC Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in Woodward by 116.7% during the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 182 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. Berbice Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Woodward by 50.0% during the 1st quarter. Berbice Capital Management LLC now owns 300 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Woodward in the fourth quarter worth about $61,000. Institutional investors own 81.18% of the company’s stock.

Woodward Price Performance

NASDAQ:WWD opened at $245.33 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.04, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The company has a market capitalization of $14.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.30. Woodward, Inc. has a 12 month low of $146.82 and a 12 month high of $267.45. The business’s 50-day moving average is $248.12 and its 200 day moving average is $209.24.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The technology company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $915.45 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $884.98 million. Woodward had a return on equity of 16.57% and a net margin of 11.32%. The firm’s revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.63 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Woodward, Inc. will post 6.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Woodward Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 21st will be given a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Woodward’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Terence J. Voskuil sold 10,000 shares of Woodward stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.03, for a total value of $2,310,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 4,945 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,142,443.35. This trade represents a 66.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Charles P. Blankenship sold 5,000 shares of Woodward stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $215.98, for a total value of $1,079,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 73,117 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,791,809.66. This represents a 6.40% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 39,296 shares of company stock worth $8,711,033. Corporate insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Woodward from $175.00 to $193.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Woodward from $200.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $245.00 price target (up from $225.00) on shares of Woodward in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Wall Street Zen raised Woodward from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price target on Woodward from $267.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $249.63.

About Woodward

Woodward, Inc designs, manufactures, and services control solutions for the aerospace and industrial markets worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Aerospace and Industrial. The Aerospace segment provides fuel pumps, metering units, actuators, air valves, specialty valves, fuel nozzles, and thrust reverser actuation systems for turbine engines and nacelles, and flight deck controls, actuators, servocontrols, motors, and sensors for aircraft.