WesBanco, Inc. (WSBC) To Go Ex-Dividend on December 6th

WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, November 20th,Wall Street Journal reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be paid a dividend of 0.37 per share by the financial services provider on Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. This is an increase from WesBanco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36.

WesBanco has raised its dividend by an average of 3.3% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 13 years. WesBanco has a dividend payout ratio of 45.3% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect WesBanco to earn $3.16 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.44 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 45.6%.

WesBanco Price Performance

WSBC traded up $0.39 during trading on Friday, reaching $36.45. 395,224 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 249,713. The company’s 50-day moving average is $31.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $30.13. WesBanco has a 12-month low of $25.56 and a 12-month high of $36.87. The company has a market cap of $2.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.26 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.03. WesBanco had a net margin of 14.79% and a return on equity of 5.75%. The business had revenue of $243.34 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $152.40 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.59 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that WesBanco will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at WesBanco

In related news, EVP Michael L. Perkins sold 1,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.87, for a total transaction of $39,228.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 46,817 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,632,508.79. This trade represents a 2.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 3.44% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. DA Davidson boosted their target price on WesBanco from $35.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $35.00 target price on shares of WesBanco in a report on Monday, September 9th. Stephens raised their target price on WesBanco from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on WesBanco from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Hovde Group raised their price objective on WesBanco from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, WesBanco has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $36.17.

WesBanco Company Profile

WesBanco, Inc operates as the bank holding company for WesBanco Bank, Inc that provides retail banking, corporate banking, personal and corporate trust, brokerage, mortgage banking, and insurance services to individuals and businesses in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Community Banking, and Trust and Investment Services.