The Goldman Sachs Group Cuts Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) Price Target to $201.00

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) had its target price cut by The Goldman Sachs Group from $228.00 to $201.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the technology company’s stock.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on WWD. Truist Financial upped their target price on Woodward from $143.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Woodward from $156.00 to $172.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. TD Cowen cut their price target on Woodward from $200.00 to $186.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Barclays increased their price target on Woodward from $140.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a report on Monday, May 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Woodward from a hold rating to a buy rating and increased their price target for the stock from $170.00 to $190.00 in a report on Wednesday. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $173.22.

Woodward Stock Performance

Woodward stock opened at $152.36 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $178.19 and a 200-day moving average of $160.58. Woodward has a 1 year low of $119.03 and a 1 year high of $188.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 1.96 and a quick ratio of 1.78. The company has a market capitalization of $9.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.37.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 29th. The technology company reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.11. Woodward had a return on equity of 17.16% and a net margin of 11.47%. The company had revenue of $847.69 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $853.29 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.37 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Woodward will post 5.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Woodward Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 22nd will be given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis 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%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Woodward

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Woodward by 79.3% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 199 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Woodward in the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Woodward in the 2nd quarter valued at $37,000. Mather Group LLC. purchased a new stake in Woodward in the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Woodward during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. 81.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.