Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) CEO Sells $1,923,750.00 in Stock

by · The Markets Daily

Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD – Get Free Report) CEO Charles Blankenship sold 5,000 shares of Woodward stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $384.75, for a total value of $1,923,750.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 65,829 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,327,707.75. The trade was a 7.06% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Woodward Stock Up 2.9%

Shares of WWD traded up $10.66 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $384.56. 619,818 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 655,705. The company has a market cap of $22.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 2.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Woodward, Inc. has a 12-month low of $146.82 and a 12-month high of $403.31. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $353.57 and a 200-day simple moving average of $296.16.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 2nd. The technology company reported $2.17 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.52. Woodward had a return on equity of 19.07% and a net margin of 12.89%.The business had revenue of $996.45 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $901.92 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.35 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 28.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Woodward has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.200-8.600 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Woodward, Inc. will post 6.15 EPS for the current year.

Woodward declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, November 20th that allows the company to buyback $1.80 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the technology company to reacquire up to 11.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Woodward Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 19th were given a $0.32 dividend. This is a positive change from Woodward’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 19th. Woodward’s payout ratio is presently 16.12%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Woodward by 38.0% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 6,642 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,008,000 after acquiring an additional 1,828 shares during the period. Mengis Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Woodward by 66.7% during the 4th quarter. Mengis Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,438 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,853,000 after purchasing an additional 3,775 shares during the last quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group boosted its stake in Woodward by 22.8% during the 4th quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 1,916 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $580,000 after purchasing an additional 356 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in Woodward in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $61,000. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its position in Woodward by 15.2% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 9,183 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,776,000 after buying an additional 1,213 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.18% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Woodward from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 10th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Woodward from $378.00 to $417.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. TD Cowen raised their target price on Woodward from $350.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Woodward from $362.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Melius Research raised Woodward from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $354.80.

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About Woodward

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Woodward, Inc (NASDAQ: WWD) is a global leader in the design, manufacture and service of control systems and components for the aerospace and industrial markets. Founded in 1870 and headquartered in Fort Collins, Colorado, the company specializes in motion control, fuel systems, actuation, and digital control solutions. Its offerings enable precision management of flow, pressure and motion in critical applications ranging from aircraft engines and power turbines to hydraulic systems.

Woodward’s product portfolio is organized into two primary segments: Aerospace and Industrial.

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