Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) COO Thomas G. Cromwell Sells 7,913 Shares

Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) COO Thomas G. Cromwell sold 7,913 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.13, for a total value of $1,385,803.69. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 11,511 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,015,921.43. This represents a 40.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Woodward Stock Down 1.6 %

Shares of WWD traded down $2.82 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $170.07. The company had a trading volume of 154,127 shares, compared to its average volume of 419,417. The company has a market capitalization of $10.15 billion, a PE ratio of 28.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. Woodward, Inc. has a one year low of $126.31 and a one year high of $188.35. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $166.88 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $170.67.

Woodward Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.59%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. Woodward’s payout ratio is 16.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Truist Financial raised Woodward from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $152.00 to $187.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating and set a $160.00 price target (down from $186.00) on shares of Woodward in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on Woodward from $158.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on Woodward from $228.00 to $201.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, StockNews.com raised Woodward from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $174.67.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new position in Woodward during the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Woodward in the third quarter worth about $31,000. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Woodward in the second quarter worth about $37,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Woodward in the third quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in Woodward by 101.6% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 246 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. 81.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.