West Bancorporation stock initiated at Neutral by Piper Sandler with $21.50 target

Investing.com - Piper Sandler initiated coverage on West Bancorporation, Inc. (NASDAQ:WTBA) with a Neutral rating and a $21.50 price target on Tuesday. According to InvestingPro data, the bank currently trades at a P/E ratio of 13.18x and offers an attractive dividend yield of 4.89%, having maintained dividend payments for 27 consecutive years.

The price target represents a valuation of 10.0x Piper Sandler’s 2026 estimated earnings per share, which is largely in-line with peer valuations of 9.9x.

West Bancorporation is a $4.0 billion asset bank headquartered in West Des Moines, Iowa, operating eleven locations across Des Moines, Iowa City-Coralville, and targeted Minnesota metropolitan statistical areas.

Piper Sandler described WTBA as a "high-quality, commercially-focused and holistic community bank" with a strong deposit franchise and attractive positioning in relatively higher growth Midwest markets.

The firm’s Neutral stance reflects limited visibility of catalysts to drive West Bancorporation’s improving profitability profile closer to peers, with Piper Sandler estimating a 0.6% return on assets in 2024 compared to 0.8%-0.9% in 2025/26.

In other recent news, West Bancorporation reported its first-quarter 2025 earnings, exceeding analyst forecasts. The company achieved an earnings per share (EPS) of $0.46, surpassing the anticipated $0.40, and revenue reached $23.1 million, above the expected $21.7 million. Despite these positive financial results, the company’s stock experienced a decline, reflecting broader market concerns and specific challenges within the company. West Bancorporation also reported a net income increase to $7.8 million from $5.8 million a year earlier. The company has seen continuous growth in net interest income over the past five quarters. Additionally, the net interest margin increased by 30 basis points from the previous quarter. The company’s executives discussed their strategy for maintaining strong credit quality and emphasized the importance of relationship banking. West Bancorporation remains optimistic about its loan and deposit pipeline, though it remains cautious due to economic uncertainties.

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