Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Sell

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) was downgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on WABC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Westamerica Bancorporation from $60.00 to $58.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 19th. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of Westamerica Bancorporation from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 19th.

Westamerica Bancorporation Price Performance

Shares of WABC stock opened at $45.50 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $46.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $48.98. Westamerica Bancorporation has a 12 month low of $35.52 and a 12 month high of $57.96. The company has a market capitalization of $1.21 billion, a PE ratio of 7.51 and a beta of 0.56.

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by ($0.02). Westamerica Bancorporation had a return on equity of 23.61% and a net margin of 49.39%. The firm had revenue of $80.37 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $81.03 million. Sell-side analysts forecast that Westamerica Bancorporation will post 5.35 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Westamerica Bancorporation

In related news, CEO David L. Payne sold 15,000 shares of Westamerica Bancorporation stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.75, for a total value of $746,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 288,689 shares in the company, valued at $14,362,277.75. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CEO David L. Payne sold 11,272 shares of Westamerica Bancorporation stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.79, for a total value of $527,416.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 242,417 shares in the company, valued at $11,342,691.43. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO David L. Payne sold 15,000 shares of Westamerica Bancorporation stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.75, for a total transaction of $746,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 288,689 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,362,277.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 45,000 shares of company stock worth $2,213,458. Corporate insiders own 5.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Global Retirement Partners LLC purchased a new position in Westamerica Bancorporation in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Point72 Middle East FZE purchased a new position in Westamerica Bancorporation in the second quarter worth approximately $34,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in Westamerica Bancorporation by 91.0% in the second quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,293 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 616 shares during the last quarter. Money Concepts Capital Corp purchased a new position in Westamerica Bancorporation in the fourth quarter worth approximately $70,000. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its stake in Westamerica Bancorporation by 123.9% in the first quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 1,547 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $94,000 after acquiring an additional 856 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.89% of the company’s stock.

Westamerica Bancorporation Company Profile

Westamerica Bancorporation operates as a bank holding company for the Westamerica Bank that provides various banking products and services to individual and commercial customers. The company accepts various deposit products, including retail savings and checking accounts, as well as certificates of deposit.