West Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WTBA) Share Price Crosses Above 200 Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

West Bancorporation, Inc. (NASDAQ:WTBA)’s share price crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Monday. The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $26.60 and traded as high as $29.38. West Bancorporation shares last traded at $28.97, with a volume of 41,494 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded West Bancorporation from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on West Bancorporation from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Hovde Group raised their price objective on West Bancorporation from $25.50 to $28.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered West Bancorporation from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $29.00.

West Bancorporation Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The stock has a market cap of $500.46 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.17 and a beta of 0.71. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $28.99 and a 200 day moving average of $26.63.

West Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WTBA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $28.22 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $28.15 million. West Bancorporation had a net margin of 18.75% and a return on equity of 15.48%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.47 EPS. On average, analysts expect that West Bancorporation, Inc. will post 2.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On West Bancorporation

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Independent Wealth Network Inc. grew its stake in shares of West Bancorporation by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Independent Wealth Network Inc. now owns 15,260 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $435,000 after buying an additional 465 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its holdings in shares of West Bancorporation by 83.5% during the 3rd quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 1,411 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 642 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of West Bancorporation by 4.2% during the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 11,186 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $297,000 after buying an additional 448 shares during the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC raised its position in shares of West Bancorporation by 332.0% during the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 36,548 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $970,000 after buying an additional 28,087 shares during the period. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its position in shares of West Bancorporation by 28.8% during the 1st quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 34,480 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $820,000 after buying an additional 7,702 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 44.30% of the company’s stock.

West Bancorporation Company Profile

West Bancorporation, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in West Des Moines, Iowa. Its principal subsidiary, West Bank, provides commercial banking services to businesses, agricultural customers, professionals and individuals.

West Bank’s products and services include commercial and real estate lending, agricultural loans, residential mortgage lending, consumer loans, deposit accounts, cash-management services, online and mobile banking, and trust and investment services. The bank also supports businesses through treasury-management and other financial services.

West Bancorporation traces its banking operations to the establishment of West Bank in 1893.