The Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) share price is looking good, at least according to some experts.
At the close of trade on Friday, shares in one of Australia's 'big 4' banks were at $25.67 – down 2.14%. For context, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) had a monster of a day. It ended yesterday 1.44% lower.
Let's take a closer look.
Why experts are seeing upside in the Westpac share price
Fairmont Equities managing director Michael Gable was previously reported by Motley Fool on how he believes the Westpac share price would be about to "break out".
"What's interesting is that we had a share price peak in June," he told Finance News Network.
"As it tried to recover, instead of it being sold back down … it's just managed to head sideways. This is a good sign."
Gable believes once the recent $25.74 resistance level is breached, Westpac shares could gain momentum upwards. This has already occurred.
As well, analysts at Morgans think a Westpac share buyback is "likely".
The bank is scheduled to release its full-year results on November 1 and Morgans is urging investors to buy.
"WBC is our preferred major bank," said Morgans. "We expect WBC to announce a $5bn off-market share buyback on 1 November and we expect investors to increasingly warm up to WBC's medium-term cost out story."
The broker has an add rating on the Westpac share price with a price target of $29.50 a share.
What else has happened recently?
Westpac has also announced changes to its board.
In a statement to the ASX, Westpac announced Steve Harker's retirement from the board. Harker joined the board in March 2019.
Westpac Chair John McFarlane said at the time:
On behalf of the board, I would like to thank Steve for his considerable contribution to Westpac, in what has been a challenging time for the company.
Early this year, Steve signalled he was considering retiring from the board as he requires a double lung transplant and wants to focus on his health. We commend Steve for his professionalism and commitment to shareholders throughout his tenure and wish him a fast recovery.
Westpac share price snapshot
Over the past 12 months, the Westpac share price has increased 43%. Year-to-date, shares in the company are 32.52% higher.
Its 52-week high is $27.12 and its 52-week low is $17.18.
Westpac Banking Corp has a market capitalisation of approximately $95 billion.
