GPM Growth Investors Inc. Sells 9,811 Shares of Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE:WD)

GPM Growth Investors Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE:WD) by 17.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 46,981 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 9,811 shares during the period. Walker & Dunlop comprises 2.5% of GPM Growth Investors Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 19th largest holding. GPM Growth Investors Inc. owned about 0.14% of Walker & Dunlop worth $5,215,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Walker & Dunlop by 1.4% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 413,474 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,696,000 after acquiring an additional 5,839 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Walker & Dunlop by 4,480.2% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 397,149 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,484,000 after buying an additional 388,478 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Walker & Dunlop by 9.8% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 395,695 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,376,000 after buying an additional 35,454 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of Walker & Dunlop by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 390,949 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,024,000 after purchasing an additional 6,822 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Walker & Dunlop by 16.6% during the 3rd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 296,015 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $21,976,000 after buying an additional 42,160 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.97% of the company’s stock.

Walker & Dunlop Stock Performance

WD traded down $1.13 on Tuesday, hitting $92.81. 37,802 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 224,169. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $93.99 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $91.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.12 billion, a PE ratio of 29.19 and a beta of 1.53. Walker & Dunlop, Inc. has a 12 month low of $61.06 and a 12 month high of $113.67.

Walker & Dunlop (NYSE:WD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.42 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by $0.38. The company had revenue of $274.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $276.76 million. Walker & Dunlop had a net margin of 10.18% and a return on equity of 9.15%. The firm’s revenue was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.41 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Walker & Dunlop, Inc. will post 4.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Walker & Dunlop Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This is a boost from Walker & Dunlop’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.63. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.80%. Walker & Dunlop’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 81.76%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on WD. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a “market perform” rating and set a $105.00 price target on shares of Walker & Dunlop in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Wedbush cut shares of Walker & Dunlop from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $130.00 to $95.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Walker & Dunlop from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, March 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and three have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $100.00.

Insider Activity at Walker & Dunlop

In related news, Director Howard W. Smith III sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.81, for a total transaction of $1,876,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 191,508 shares in the company, valued at $17,965,365.48. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Howard W. Smith III sold 20,166 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.56, for a total value of $1,886,730.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 191,508 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,917,488.48. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Howard W. Smith III sold 20,000 shares of Walker & Dunlop stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.81, for a total value of $1,876,200.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 191,508 shares in the company, valued at $17,965,365.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 46,074 shares of company stock worth $4,328,255 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 5.26% of the company’s stock.

Walker & Dunlop Company Profile

Walker & Dunlop, Inc, through its subsidiaries, originates, sells, and services a range of multifamily and other commercial real estate financing products and services for owners and developers of real estate in the United States. It operates through three segments: Capital Markets, Servicing & Asset Management, and Corporate.