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How to buy Westpac Banking Corporation shares
Own Westpac Banking Corporation shares in just a few minutes.
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Westpac Banking Corporation is a banks-diversified business based in Australia. Westpac Banking Corporation shares (WBC) are listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) and all prices are listed in Australian Dollars. Westpac Banking Corporation has a trailing 12-month revenue of around $17 billion..
How to buy shares in Westpac Banking Corporation
- Compare share trading platforms. To buy shares listed in Australia, you'll need to sign up to a broker with access to the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX). Our table below can help you choose.
- Open and fund your brokerage account. Complete an application with your personal and financial details, like your ID and tax file number. Fund your account with a bank transfer, PayPal or debit card.
- Search for Westpac Banking Corporation. Find the share by name or ticker symbol: WBC. Research its history to confirm it's a solid investment against your financial goals.
- Purchase now or later. Buy today with a market order or use a limit order to delay your purchase until Westpac Banking Corporation reaches your desired price. To spread out your risk, look into dollar-cost averaging, which smooths out buying at consistent intervals and amounts.
- Decide on how many to buy. At today's price of $18.6, weigh your budget against a diversified portfolio that can minimise risk through the market's ups and downs.
- Check in on your investment. Congratulations, you own a part of Westpac Banking Corporation. Optimise your portfolio by tracking how your stock — and even the business — performs with an eye on the long term. You may be eligible for dividends and shareholder voting rights on directors and management that can affect your stock.
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For our Top Picks, we compared our Finder partners using a proprietary algorithm in August 2020. Keep in mind that our top picks may not always be the best for you, and you're encouraged to compare for yourself to find one that works for you. Read our full methodology here to find out more.What's in this guide?
- Westpac Banking Corporation key stats
- Compare share trading platforms
- Is Westpac Banking Corporation stock a buy or sell?
- Westpac Banking Corporation performance over time
- Is Westpac Banking Corporation suitable for ethical investing?
- Are Westpac Banking Corporation shares over-valued?
- Westpac Banking Corporation's financials
- How volatile are Westpac Banking Corporation shares?
- Does Westpac Banking Corporation pay a dividend?
- Have Westpac Banking Corporation shares ever split?
- Other common questions
Westpac Banking Corporation share price
Use our graph to track the performance of WBC stocks over time.Westpac Banking Corporation shares at a glance
Information last updated 2021-01-21.
| 52-week range | $13.2465 - $25.5292 |
|---|---|
| 50-day moving average | $20.167 |
| 200-day moving average | $18.4315 |
| Target price | $28.82 |
| PE ratio | 34.2543 |
| Dividend yield | $0.31 (1.42%) |
| Earnings per share (TTM) | $0.637 |
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AUD 8
Standard brokerage - Australian shares
Share Trading Account Offer
Competitive broker fees on Australian and international shares
- Brokerage - AU shares: From AUD 5 or 0.05%
- Brokerage - US shares: USD 0
- Sign-up process: Instant
- Support - After hours: Yes
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Important: Share trading carries risk of capital loss.
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The value of your investments can fall as well as rise and you may get back less than you invested. Past performance is no indication of future results.
Is it a good time to buy Westpac Banking Corporation stock?
The technical analysis gauge below displays real-time ratings for the timeframes you select. This is not a recommendation, however. It represents a technical analysis based on the most popular technical indicators: Moving Averages, Oscillators and Pivots. Finder might not concur and takes no responsibility.
Westpac Banking Corporation price performance over time
Historical closes compared with the close of A$18.6 on 2020-10-22
| 1 week (2021-01-14) | -11.55% |
|---|---|
| 1 month (2020-12-21) | -6.44% |
| 3 months (2020-10-21) | -0.48% |
| 6 months (2020-07-21) | 2.65% |
| 1 year (2020-01-21) | -25.96% |
|---|---|
| 2 years (2019-01-21) | -29.01% |
| 3 years (2018-01-19) | -39.86% |
| 5 years (2016-01-21) | -37.77% |
Is Westpac Banking Corporation under- or over-valued?
Valuing Westpac Banking Corporation stock is incredibly difficult, and any metric has to be viewed as part of a bigger picture of Westpac Banking Corporation's overall performance. However, analysts commonly use some key metrics to help gauge the value of a stock.
Westpac Banking Corporation's P/E ratio
Westpac Banking Corporation's current share price divided by its per-share earnings (EPS) over a 12-month period gives a "trailing price/earnings ratio" of roughly 34x. In other words, Westpac Banking Corporation shares trade at around 34x recent earnings.
That's relatively high compared to, say, the P/E ratio for the ASX over the 12 months to December 2019 (32.14). The high P/E ratio could mean that investors are optimistic about the outlook for the shares or simply that they're over-valued.
Westpac Banking Corporation's PEG ratio
Westpac Banking Corporation's "price/earnings-to-growth ratio" can be calculated by dividing its P/E ratio by its growth – to give 0.6869. A low ratio can be interpreted as meaning the shares offer better value, while a higher ratio can be interpreted as meaning the shares offer worse value.
The PEG ratio provides a broader view than just the P/E ratio, as it gives more insight into Westpac Banking Corporation's future profitability. By accounting for growth, it could also help you if you're comparing the share prices of multiple high-growth companies.
Westpac Banking Corporation financials
| Revenue TTM | $17 billion |
|---|---|
| Operating margin TTM | 34.58% |
| Gross profit TTM | $17 billion |
| Return on assets TTM | 0.25% |
| Return on equity TTM | 3.43% |
| Profit margin | 13.47% |
| Book value | 18.858 |
| Market capitalisation | $78.8 billion |
TTM: trailing 12 months
Westpac Banking Corporation's environmental, social and governance track record
Environmental, social and governance (known as ESG) criteria are a set of three factors used to measure the sustainability and social impact of companies like Westpac Banking Corporation.
When it comes to ESG scores, lower is better, and lower scores are generally associated with lower risk for would-be investors.
Westpac Banking Corporation's total ESG risk score
Total ESG risk: 32.54
Socially conscious investors use ESG scores to screen how an investment aligns with their worldview, and Westpac Banking Corporation's overall score of 32.54 (as at 01/01/2019) is nothing to write home about – landing it in it in the 52nd percentile of companies rated in the same sector.
ESG scores are increasingly used to estimate the level of risk a company like Westpac Banking Corporation is exposed to within the areas of "environmental" (carbon footprint, resource use etc.), "social" (health and safety, human rights etc.), and "governance" (anti-corruption, tax transparency etc.).
Westpac Banking Corporation's environmental score
Environmental score: 5.85/100
Westpac Banking Corporation's environmental score of 5.85 puts it squarely in the 7th percentile of companies rated in the same sector. This could suggest that Westpac Banking Corporation is a leader in its sector terms of its environmental impact, and exposed to a lower level of risk.
Westpac Banking Corporation's social score
Social score: 18.23/100
Westpac Banking Corporation's social score of 18.23 puts it squarely in the 7th percentile of companies rated in the same sector. This could suggest that Westpac Banking Corporation is a leader in its sector when it comes to taking good care of its workforce and the communities it impacts.
Westpac Banking Corporation's governance score
Governance score: 17.95/100
Westpac Banking Corporation's governance score puts it squarely in the 7th percentile of companies rated in the same sector. That could suggest that Westpac Banking Corporation is a leader in its sector when it comes to responsible management and strategy, and exposed to a lower level of risk.
Westpac Banking Corporation's controversy score
Controversy score: 4/5
ESG scores also evaluate any incidences of controversy that a company has been involved in. Westpac Banking Corporation scored a 4 out of 5 for controversy – the second-lowest score possible, reflecting that Westpac Banking Corporation has a damaged public profile.
Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) summary
Westpac Banking Corporation was last rated for ESG on: 2019-01-01.
| Total ESG score | 32.54 |
|---|---|
| Total ESG percentile | 52.25 |
| Environmental score | 5.85 |
| Environmental score percentile | 7 |
| Social score | 18.23 |
| Social score percentile | 7 |
| Governance score | 17.95 |
| Governance score percentile | 7 |
| Level of controversy | 4 |
Westpac Banking Corporation share dividends
Dividend payout ratio: 49.21% of net profits
Recently Westpac Banking Corporation has paid out, on average, around 49.21% of net profits as dividends. That has enabled analysts to estimate a "forward annual dividend yield" of 1.42% of the current stock value. This means that over a year, based on recent payouts (which are sadly no guarantee of future payouts), Westpac Banking Corporation shareholders could enjoy a 1.42% return on their shares, in the form of dividend payments. In Westpac Banking Corporation's case, that would currently equate to about A$0.31 per share.
While Westpac Banking Corporation's payout ratio might seem fairly standard, it's worth remembering that Westpac Banking Corporation may be investing much of the rest of its net profits in future growth.
The latest dividend was paid out to all shareholders who bought their shares by 11 November 2020 (the "ex-dividend date").
Have Westpac Banking Corporation's shares ever split?
Westpac Banking Corporation's shares were split on 17 October 1997.
Westpac Banking Corporation share price volatility
Over the last 12 months, Westpac Banking Corporation's shares have ranged in value from as little as $13.2465 up to $25.5292. A popular way to gauge a stock's volatility is its "beta".
Beta is a measure of a share's volatility in relation to the market. The market (AU average) beta is 1, while Westpac Banking Corporation's is 0.7819. This would suggest that Westpac Banking Corporation's shares are less volatile than average (for this exchange).
Westpac Banking Corporation overview
Westpac Banking Corporation provides various banking and financial services in Australia, New Zealand, and internationally. The company operates through four divisions: Consumer, Business, Westpac Institutional Bank, Westpac New Zealand, Specialist Businesses, and Group Businesses. It offers everyday banking, savings, term deposit, business transaction, foreign currency, and specialized accounts; home, personal, and business loans; credit cards; international and travel services; share trading services; investment; and home, car, travel, life, and business insurance products. The company also provides merchant and payment, corporate and institutional, transaction banking, financial market, corporate and structured finance, trade and supply chain financing, and industry specific banking and treasury services, as well as online banking services. It serves individuals; micro, small, and medium enterprises; commercial business and private wealth clients; and commercial, corporate, institutional, and government customers. The company was formerly known as Bank of New South Wales and changed its name to Westpac Banking Corporation in October 1982. The company was founded in 1817 and is headquartered in Sydney, Australia.
Frequently asked questions
Disclaimer: This information should not be interpreted as an endorsement of futures, stocks, ETFs, CFDs, options or any specific provider, service or offering. It should not be relied upon as investment advice or construed as providing recommendations of any kind. Futures, stocks, ETFs and options trading involves substantial risk of loss and therefore are not appropriate for all investors. Trading CFDs comes with a higher risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Past performance is not an indication of future results. Consider your own circumstances, and obtain your own advice, before making any trades.
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