First Trust Advisors LP Sells 117,286 Shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (WAL)

First Trust Advisors LP cut its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) by 38.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 186,760 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 117,286 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP owned 0.18% of Western Alliance Bancorporation worth $7,375,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. First Interstate Bank increased its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. First Interstate Bank now owns 5,925 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $234,000 after purchasing an additional 280 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc increased its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 47,593 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,708,000 after purchasing an additional 492 shares in the last quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 79,626 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,144,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its holdings in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 18,414 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $725,000 after purchasing an additional 718 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC purchased a new position in shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $54,000. 83.16% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on WAL shares. Stephens reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation in a report on Wednesday, December 12th. Zacks Investment Research raised shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $52.00 target price for the company in a report on Wednesday. Citigroup raised shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and cut their target price for the company from $56.00 to $53.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 15th. TheStreet lowered shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Monday, December 24th. Finally, ValuEngine lowered shares of Western Alliance Bancorporation from a “sell” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. The stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $62.50.

Shares of NYSE WAL opened at $44.87 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.84, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Western Alliance Bancorporation has a one year low of $37.39 and a one year high of $64.06.

Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $281.97 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $262.36 million. Western Alliance Bancorporation had a net margin of 40.48% and a return on equity of 18.22%. The firm’s revenue was up 23.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.85 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Western Alliance Bancorporation will post 4.7 earnings per share for the current year.

In related news, Director Bruce D. Beach sold 3,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.55, for a total value of $174,562.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 5,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $232,750. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Randall S. Theisen sold 2,370 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.09, for a total transaction of $109,233.30. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,179 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $423,060.11. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 7.48% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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Western Alliance Bancorporation Profile

Western Alliance Bancorporation operates as the holding company for Western Alliance Bank that provides various banking products and related services primarily in Arizona, California, and Nevada. The company offers deposit products, including checking accounts, savings accounts, and money market accounts, as well as fixed-rate and fixed maturity certificates of deposit accounts.

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