Inceptionr LLC Takes Position in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD)

Inceptionr LLC acquired a new stake in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 2,708 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $451,000.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Woodward by 4.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,421,483 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $415,309,000 after purchasing an additional 110,569 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Woodward by 4.9% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,278,502 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $219,321,000 after purchasing an additional 59,290 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Woodward by 135.1% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 992,189 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $170,170,000 after purchasing an additional 570,124 shares in the last quarter. Naya Capital Management UK Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Woodward during the third quarter worth approximately $99,000,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Woodward by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 503,977 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $83,872,000 after purchasing an additional 3,099 shares in the last quarter. 81.18% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Woodward Stock Performance

Shares of Woodward stock opened at $176.35 on Friday. Woodward, Inc. has a 52 week low of $144.13 and a 52 week high of $201.64. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $184.29 and its 200-day simple moving average is $174.50. The firm has a market cap of $10.47 billion, a PE ratio of 29.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The technology company reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.14 by $0.21. Woodward had a return on equity of 16.76% and a net margin of 11.18%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.45 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Woodward, Inc. will post 6.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Woodward Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 20th were paid a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 20th. This is a positive change from Woodward’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Woodward’s dividend payout ratio is 18.76%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on WWD shares. StockNews.com upgraded Woodward from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Woodward from $216.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Woodward from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Woodward from $193.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Woodward from $226.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $197.38.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Gregg C. Sengstack sold 4,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $187.86, for a total value of $864,156.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 17,450 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,278,157. The trade was a 20.86 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

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.