Vanguard Group Inc. Purchases 34,762 Shares of Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC)

Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) by 1.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,505,495 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 34,762 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 0.13% of Westamerica Bancorporation worth $183,898,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in WABC. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in Westamerica Bancorporation during the fourth quarter worth approximately $273,000. Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its holdings in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 20.0% during the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 25,040 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,314,000 after buying an additional 4,176 shares in the last quarter. Gallacher Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation during the 4th quarter worth approximately $205,000. Royce & Associates LP increased its stake in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 43.2% in the 4th quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 27,456 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,440,000 after acquiring an additional 8,286 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Westamerica Bancorporation by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 37,366 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,960,000 after acquiring an additional 1,940 shares during the period. 81.89% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Westamerica Bancorporation Stock Down 5.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ WABC opened at $45.39 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The firm has a market cap of $1.21 billion, a PE ratio of 8.73 and a beta of 0.63. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $50.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $52.02. Westamerica Bancorporation has a 12-month low of $44.51 and a 12-month high of $59.97.

Westamerica Bancorporation (NASDAQ:WABC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19. Westamerica Bancorporation had a net margin of 44.55% and a return on equity of 16.15%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.48 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Westamerica Bancorporation will post 4.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Westamerica Bancorporation Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were paid a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.88%. Westamerica Bancorporation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.85%.

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.