Woodward, Inc. (WWD) Stock Price & How to Invest

Woodward is an industrial technology company that designs control systems and components for aircraft engines and industrial power equipment. It operates two segments. Aerospace, its larger and higher-margin segment, makes fuel-control systems, actuators, valves, and motion-control hardware that go into commercial jet engines, business jets, and military aircraft and weapons, sold both to original-equipment manufacturers and as lucrative aftermarket spares. Industrial makes controls and fuel systems for natural-gas and diesel engines, turbines, and increasingly for power generation, marine, and alternative fuels (hydrogen and natural gas used in transportation and energy). Woodward's products are mission-critical precision components where reliability matters more than price, giving it durable customer relationships and a steady aftermarket revenue stream tied to the large installed base of engines it has equipped over decades. Founded in 1870 and headquartered in Fort Collins, Colorado, Woodward is a niche, high-quality aerospace and industrial supplier leveraged to the commercial-aerospace recovery and energy transition.

The operating record through mid-2026 has been strong. In the quarter ended June 30, 2026 (Woodward's fiscal third quarter), revenue rose ~21% year over year to about $1.11 billion and EPS of $2.52 edged past a ~$2.45 consensus, the fourth straight beat; trailing twelve month revenue is about $4.19 billion with net income of ~$552 million. In September the company said it will close its Santa Clarita, California plant by December 2027, moving military flight-control actuation to a new aerospace campus in Spartanburg, South Carolina (opening summer 2027) and selling a group of legacy rotorcraft, land-systems and business-jet products with the facility, at an expected pre-tax cost of ~$34-47.5 million and about 400 affected roles. The stock closed at ~$333 on October 16, 2026, giving a market value near $19.6 billion, well off its 52-week high of ~$451. Fiscal fourth quarter results are scheduled for November 23.

Woodward is exposed to the commercial-aerospace cycle: a downturn in air travel or a slowdown in OEM build rates (including production issues at Boeing or Airbus) directly reduces demand. It is also sensitive to supply-chain constraints, labor availability, and inflation in a precision-manufacturing business. The industrial segment is tied to cyclical energy, power, and transportation end markets and to the uncertain pace of the energy transition. Concentration with a small number of large engine makers and aircraft OEMs creates customer dependence. Program delays, execution missteps, or margin pressure can hurt results. The Santa Clarita closure and Spartanburg ramp, with ~$34-47.5 million of expected charges, add a manufacturing-transition risk through 2027. The stock trades at a premium aerospace-supplier multiple (about 37 times trailing and 31 times forward earnings in October 2026) that embeds the recovery, leaving limited cushion if aerospace demand or margins disappoint. Free cash flow over the trailing year was about $187 million, light relative to ~$552 million of net income, which is worth watching while capital spending on new capacity runs high.

12 analysts publish price targets on WWD, averaging $424.67 against a $328.48 price as of October 2026, or +29.3%. The published targets run from $380.00 to $478.00, a narrow spread, and the ratings split 10 buy, 3 hold, 0 sell. Over the last six months there have been 3 raises and 4 cuts among the published actions. A price target is what an analyst published on a date, not a prediction, and sell-side ratings skew positive across the whole market.

Read the full WWD forecast and price target for the target table, the recent rating actions by firm, and how the consensus has shifted.

We give no verdict on Woodward, Inc.. Both cases are real, which is why the question is contested at all, so here is the strongest version of each.

The case for buying. Commercial aerospace recovery and aftermarket. As global air travel and aircraft production climb, demand rises for Woodward's fuel controls and actuators on new engines, while the large installed base drives high-margin aftermarket spares and repairs that grow with flight hours. The most optimistic published target, $478.00, assumes this works close to its best case.

The case against. Woodward is exposed to the commercial-aerospace cycle: a downturn in air travel or a slowdown in OEM build rates (including production issues at Boeing or Airbus) directly reduces demand. The most pessimistic target, $380.00, is roughly what WWD is worth if this bites instead.

Read the full bull and bear case on WWD, including what would have to change to break either one. Walnut is not an investment adviser.

No. Woodward, Inc. (WWD) has not split its stock in the last 10 years. That is a statement about the window we check rather than about the company’s entire history, so an older split is possible. It also matters less than it once did: fractional shares mean a high price per share no longer keeps smaller investors out, which removed most of the practical reason to split.

A simple financial snapshot. These are approximations and refresh quarterly; for current figures see Woodward, Inc.'s investor relations page or your broker.

• Revenue (TTM): ~$4.19 billion (latest quarter up ~21% YoY)
• Operating / profit margin: ~18% / ~13%
• Net income (TTM): ~$552 million
• EPS (TTM / FY2027 consensus): ~$8.99 / ~$10.72
• P/E trailing / forward: ~37x / ~31x
• Free cash flow (TTM): ~$0.19 billion
• Dividend yield: ~0.4% ($1.28/yr)
• Market cap: ~$19.6 billion

Woodward trades at a premium aerospace-supplier multiple, about 37 times trailing and 31 times forward earnings in October 2026, which prices in continued aftermarket growth and margin expansion. Revenue growth accelerated to ~21% in the June 2026 quarter and EPS has beaten consensus four quarters running, yet the stock has fallen ~18% over three months from its 52-week high near $451. Fiscal fourth quarter results on November 23, 2026 carry a consensus of about $2.52 a share on ~$1.14 billion of revenue.

If you want WWD exposure as part of a larger bundle rather than directly, these ETFs hold it meaningfully. Weights are approximate and refresh quarterly.

Other names that sit close to WWD: same theme, named as a direct competitor, or held beside it in the same funds. Each entry says which. Worth a look if you are thinking about diversification within a thesis rather than concentration on one ticker.

There are three common ways to get WWD exposure. Buy shares (or fractional shares) directly at any major broker. Hold an ETF that includes it (XAR), which spreads the position across many companies. Or build it into a focused thematic portfolio, so WWD sits alongside other stocks that express the same thesis.

Walnut takes the portfolio route. Describe a thesis where WWD fits (for example “AI infrastructure” or “dividend-growth large-caps”) and the AI proposes 5 to 6 constituents with target weights. You review the plan and fund it through your own broker when you're ready.

New to this? Start with how to invest in stocks, see how to analyze a stock with AI, or compare the best AI stock analyzers.

Woodward (WWD) earns durable, high-margin aftermarket revenue from a decades-deep installed base of engines, layered with defense content and energy-transition optionality in hydrogen and natural-gas controls. In a portfolio it behaves as a moderately cyclical, premium-multiple aerospace-supplier holding leveraged to air-travel and OEM build rates, with customer concentration at Boeing, Airbus, and large engine makers as a key risk. At roughly 31 times forward earnings in October 2026, the multiple leaves little room for a stumble.

Whether WWD is worth buying today depends more on your time horizon and what you already hold than on any single call. We walk through valuation, what would have to go right, and the risks in is WWD a buy or a sell?, and where the stock could go from here in the WWD stock forecast.

For income investors, whether WWD pays a dividend and how the payout looks is covered in does WWD pay a dividend? And to weigh WWD against a peer, read the full side-by-side comparisons: WWD vs PH and WWD vs HON.