Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twelve research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $57.85.

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Webster Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $57.00 to $54.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Wedbush increased their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $52.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th.

Webster Financial Stock Performance

Shares of WBS opened at $61.78 on Monday. Webster Financial has a 12 month low of $39.33 and a 12 month high of $63.99. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $52.93 and a 200 day simple moving average of $47.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.01, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $647.62 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $677.72 million. Webster Financial had a net margin of 18.80% and a return on equity of 11.03%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.55 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Webster Financial will post 5.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.59%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 36.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Webster Financial news, Director Lauren States sold 1,650 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.60, for a total value of $99,990.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 15,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $910,393.80. This trade represents a 9.90 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.33, for a total transaction of $474,640.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 218,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,988,760.92. This represents a 3.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 36,750 shares of company stock valued at $2,074,367. 0.88% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Webster Financial

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WBS. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Webster Financial by 25.6% in the 1st quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 5,792 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $294,000 after buying an additional 1,180 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 109,811 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,572,000 after purchasing an additional 631 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 6,237,482 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $316,678,000 after purchasing an additional 95,780 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 11.3% during the 1st quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 10,559 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $536,000 after purchasing an additional 1,069 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LRI Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Webster Financial during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,169,000. 85.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Webster Financial Company Profile

Webster Financial Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Webster Bank, National Association that provides a range of financial products and services to individuals, families, and businesses in the United States. It operates through three segments: Commercial Banking, HSA Bank, and Consumer Banking.