Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE:WD) Shares Acquired by Royce & Associates LP

Royce & Associates LP increased its holdings in shares of Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE:WD) by 2.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 79,146 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,700 shares during the quarter. Royce & Associates LP owned 0.23% of Walker & Dunlop worth $7,694,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Walker & Dunlop by 48.7% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,227,874 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $139,474,000 after buying an additional 402,313 shares during the period. Erste Asset Management GmbH purchased a new position in Walker & Dunlop in the 3rd quarter worth $19,843,000. First Sabrepoint Capital Management LP lifted its position in Walker & Dunlop by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. First Sabrepoint Capital Management LP now owns 150,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $17,038,000 after acquiring an additional 75,000 shares during the period. Barclays PLC grew its stake in Walker & Dunlop by 380.1% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 56,520 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,420,000 after purchasing an additional 44,748 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealthfront Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of Walker & Dunlop in the fourth quarter valued at about $3,469,000. 80.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Walker & Dunlop Stock Performance

NYSE:WD opened at $86.23 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $89.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $101.29. The firm has a market cap of $2.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.03 and a beta of 1.63. Walker & Dunlop, Inc. has a one year low of $81.07 and a one year high of $118.19.

Walker & Dunlop (NYSE:WD) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The financial services provider reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.52 by ($0.18). Walker & Dunlop had a return on equity of 9.64% and a net margin of 9.55%. The company had revenue of $341.45 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $316.82 million. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Walker & Dunlop, Inc. will post 4.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walker & Dunlop Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a $0.67 dividend. This is a boost from Walker & Dunlop’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. Walker & Dunlop’s payout ratio is currently 84.01%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Walker & Dunlop from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, March 6th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walker & Dunlop news, CEO William M. Walker purchased 17,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $86.21 per share, for a total transaction of $1,508,675.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 411,271 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $35,455,672.91. This trade represents a 4.44 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. 5.47% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Walker & Dunlop

Walker & Dunlop, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the provision of commercial real estate and finance services. It operates through the following segments: Capital Markets, Servicing and Asset Management, and Corporate. The Capital Markets segment offers a comprehensive range of commercial real estate finance products to customers.