StockNews.com Initiates Coverage on Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL)

Stock analysts at StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL – Get Rating) in a research report issued on Thursday. The brokerage set a “hold” rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also weighed in on WAL. Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $80.00 price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a report on Monday. TheStreet raised shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a report on Thursday, February 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $90.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $89.00 to $65.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 13th. Finally, Stephens lifted their target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from $80.00 to $86.00 in a report on Thursday, January 26th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $84.89.

Western Alliance Bancorporation Stock Performance

NYSE:WAL opened at $32.35 on Thursday. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a 1 year low of $7.46 and a 1 year high of $89.26. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $68.34 and a 200-day moving average of $67.34. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 1.44.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 25th. The financial services provider reported $2.67 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.67. The business had revenue of $701.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $733.13 million. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a net margin of 34.94% and a return on equity of 22.00%. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s revenue for the quarter was up 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.32 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 10.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Tim R. Bruckner sold 1,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.16, for a total value of $128,030.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 20,244 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,481,051.04. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, insider Tim R. Bruckner sold 1,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.16, for a total value of $128,030.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 20,244 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,481,051.04. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Marianne Boyd Johnson purchased 2,475 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 13th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $25.79 per share, with a total value of $63,830.25. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,475 shares in the company, valued at $63,830.25. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 2.57% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Western Alliance Bancorporation

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 34.9% in the 2nd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 298,117 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $21,047,000 after acquiring an additional 77,075 shares in the last quarter. Symmetry Partners LLC lifted its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. Symmetry Partners LLC now owns 17,481 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,149,000 after acquiring an additional 733 shares in the last quarter. Algert Global LLC lifted its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 33.2% in the 3rd quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 96,854 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,367,000 after acquiring an additional 24,163 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its position in Western Alliance Bancorporation by 182.3% in the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 99,799 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,558,000 after acquiring an additional 64,452 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ergoteles LLC bought a new stake in Western Alliance Bancorporation in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,399,000. 84.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Western Alliance Bancorporation

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Western Alliance Bancorp is a bank holding company, which engages in the provision of deposit, lending, treasury management, international banking, and online banking products and services. It operates through the following business segments: Commercial, Consumer Related, and Corporate and Other. The Commercial segment focuses on delivering commercial banking and treasury management products and services to small and middle-market businesses, specialized banking services to sophisticated commercial institutions and investors within niche industries, as well as financial services to the real estate industry.