Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) Downgraded by Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft to Hold

Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft currently has $158.00 price objective on the technology company’s stock, down from their prior price objective of $197.00.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Woodward from $143.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 30th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Woodward from $140.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Monday, May 6th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Woodward from $200.00 to $186.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Woodward from $156.00 to $172.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Woodward from a hold rating to a buy rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $170.00 to $190.00 in a research report on Wednesday. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $173.22.

Woodward Trading Down 1.6 %

Shares of WWD opened at $152.36 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $178.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $160.41. Woodward has a 12-month low of $119.03 and a 12-month high of $188.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.37.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 29th. The technology company reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.52 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $847.69 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $853.29 million. Woodward had a net margin of 11.47% and a return on equity of 17.16%. The business’s revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.37 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Woodward will post 5.93 EPS for the current year.

Woodward Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 22nd. Woodward’s payout ratio is currently 17.48%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Woodward

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Woodward by 79.3% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 199 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Woodward during the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Woodward in the 2nd quarter valued at about $37,000. Mather Group LLC. purchased a new position in shares of Woodward in the 1st quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Woodward during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.18% 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.