West Bancorporation, Inc. (NASDAQ:WTBA) Shares Acquired by Geode Capital Management LLC

Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in West Bancorporation, Inc. (NASDAQ:WTBA) by 2.1% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 356,288 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,320 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in West Bancorporation were worth $6,775,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WTBA. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in West Bancorporation by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 120,264 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,153,000 after acquiring an additional 3,945 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in West Bancorporation in the third quarter worth about $114,000. State Street Corp grew its position in West Bancorporation by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 372,033 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,072,000 after buying an additional 6,809 shares in the last quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP increased its stake in West Bancorporation by 27.3% during the 3rd quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP now owns 32,156 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $612,000 after buying an additional 6,893 shares during the period. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its position in shares of West Bancorporation by 3.9% during the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 216,752 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,880,000 after buying an additional 8,200 shares in the last quarter. 44.30% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Douglas R. Gulling sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.61, for a total value of $94,440.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 80,709 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,905,539.49. This represents a 4.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 4.48% of the company’s stock.

West Bancorporation Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WTBA opened at $21.65 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $23.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $20.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $364.43 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.91 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86. West Bancorporation, Inc. has a 52-week low of $15.80 and a 52-week high of $24.85.

West Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WTBA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.04. West Bancorporation had a return on equity of 9.46% and a net margin of 11.17%. The firm had revenue of $50.97 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.00 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.35 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that West Bancorporation, Inc. will post 1.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

West Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 6th were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 6th. West Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio is 78.13%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on WTBA. StockNews.com upgraded shares of West Bancorporation from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of West Bancorporation from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th.

West Bancorporation Profile

West Bancorporation, Inc operates as the financial holding company provides community banking and trust services to individuals and small- to medium-sized businesses in the United States. It offers deposit services, including checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as time certificates of deposit.