R Squared Ltd Invests $733,000 in Woodward, Inc. $WWD

R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 2,900 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $733,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in Woodward in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Woodward by 1,766.7% in the third quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 112 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Financial Perspectives Inc purchased a new position in shares of Woodward in the third quarter worth $30,000. Kilter Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Woodward in the second quarter worth $39,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC raised its holdings in Woodward by 627.3% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 160 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. 81.18% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on WWD shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on shares of Woodward from $430.00 to $445.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Woodward in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Zacks Research raised Woodward from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $450.00 price objective on shares of Woodward in a research report on Sunday, February 8th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on Woodward from $378.00 to $417.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $354.80.

Insider Buying and Selling at Woodward

In other news, COO Thomas G. Cromwell sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $297.88, for a total value of $1,489,400.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 15,135 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,508,413.80. This represents a 24.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director John D. Cohn sold 2,250 shares of Woodward stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $369.62, for a total transaction of $831,645.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 21,575 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,974,551.50. This trade represents a 9.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 39,450 shares of company stock valued at $12,335,945 over the last 90 days. 0.71% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Woodward Stock Performance

Woodward stock opened at $387.74 on Friday. Woodward, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $146.82 and a fifty-two week high of $403.31. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $344.70 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $289.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a current ratio of 2.05. The stock has a market cap of $23.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.83, a PEG ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 1.00.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 2nd. The technology company reported $2.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $996.45 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $901.92 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.35 EPS. The business’s 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. As a group, analysts expect that Woodward, Inc. will post 6.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Woodward Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This is a boost from Woodward’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Woodward’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.12%.

Woodward announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, November 20th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.80 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the technology company to reacquire up to 11.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Woodward Profile

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.