Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) Downgraded by StockNews.com to “Sell”

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report issued on Tuesday.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on WABC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Westamerica Bancorporation from $60.00 to $58.00 and set a market perform rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 19th. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Westamerica Bancorporation from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 19th.

Westamerica Bancorporation Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WABC opened at $45.62 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $46.80 and its 200-day moving average price is $49.00. Westamerica Bancorporation has a fifty-two week low of $35.52 and a fifty-two week high of $57.96. The company has a market cap of $1.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.53 and a beta of 0.56.

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by ($0.02). Westamerica Bancorporation had a net margin of 49.39% and a return on equity of 23.61%. The company had revenue of $80.37 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $81.03 million. Sell-side analysts predict that Westamerica Bancorporation will post 5.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Westamerica Bancorporation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 5th were given a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 2nd. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.86%. Westamerica Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.04%.

Insider Activity at Westamerica Bancorporation

In related news, CEO David L. Payne sold 8,728 shares of Westamerica Bancorporation stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.95, for a total value of $444,691.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 333,689 shares in the company, valued at $17,001,454.55. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CEO David L. Payne sold 11,272 shares of Westamerica Bancorporation stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.79, for a total transaction of $527,416.88. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 242,417 shares in the company, valued at $11,342,691.43. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO David L. Payne sold 8,728 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.95, for a total value of $444,691.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 333,689 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,001,454.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 45,000 shares of company stock worth $2,213,458. Company insiders own 5.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Westamerica Bancorporation

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. BlackRock Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 3,982,861 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $176,441,000 after acquiring an additional 179,782 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,218,835 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $168,312,000 after buying an additional 43,011 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 7.6% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,334,460 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $51,110,000 after buying an additional 93,807 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in Westamerica Bancorporation by 20.8% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,198,333 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $51,828,000 after purchasing an additional 206,376 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Westamerica Bancorporation by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 782,733 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $44,155,000 after purchasing an additional 21,547 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.89% of the company’s stock.

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.