Natixis Advisors LLC Has $37.05 Million Stock Holdings in Woodward, Inc. $WWD

Natixis Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ:WWD) by 13.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 146,619 shares of the technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 16,880 shares during the quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC owned about 0.24% of Woodward worth $37,052,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in Woodward by 1.8% in the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 869,117 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $213,012,000 after purchasing an additional 15,572 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Woodward during the second quarter worth $201,555,000. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership acquired a new position in shares of Woodward in the 3rd quarter valued at $184,721,000. Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in shares of Woodward by 4.6% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 711,804 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $174,458,000 after buying an additional 31,434 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of Woodward by 7.2% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 407,856 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $99,961,000 after buying an additional 27,430 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.18% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on the company. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Woodward from $350.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Truist Financial increased their price target on Woodward from $366.00 to $404.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Woodward from $362.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Woodward from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, January 10th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Woodward from $378.00 to $417.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Woodward presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $354.80.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Woodward news, Director Eileen P. Paterson sold 5,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $378.15, for a total value of $1,966,380.00. Following the sale, the director owned 2,538 shares in the company, valued at approximately $959,744.70. The trade was a 67.20% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Thomas G. Cromwell sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $297.88, for a total value of $1,489,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 15,135 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,508,413.80. This trade represents a 24.83% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 29,300 shares of company stock worth $10,281,210 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.71% of the company’s stock.

Woodward Trading Up 2.9%

WWD opened at $384.56 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a current ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 1.36 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’s fifty day simple moving average is $355.12 and its 200 day simple moving average is $297.12.

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 2nd. The technology company reported $2.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analysts’ expectations of $901.92 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.35 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 28.8% on a year-over-year basis. Woodward has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.200-8.600 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Woodward, Inc. will post 6.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Woodward Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 19th were issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 19th. This is a boost from Woodward’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Woodward’s dividend payout ratio is 16.12%.

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 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 typically a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Woodward Company 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.