JPMorgan Chase & Co. Trims Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) Target Price to $55.00

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) had its price target dropped by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $58.00 to $55.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price objective indicates a potential upside of 20.75% from the company’s current price.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $58.00 to $55.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Barclays cut their price objective on Webster Financial from $65.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $54.00 to $51.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $56.00 to $51.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Webster Financial from $57.00 to $54.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $56.10.

Webster Financial Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of Webster Financial stock traded up $0.79 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $45.55. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,440,760 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,226,531. The company has a market capitalization of $7.81 billion, a PE ratio of 9.33, a P/E/G ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $45.49 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $45.35. Webster Financial has a 52 week low of $36.36 and a 52 week high of $53.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.34 by ($0.08). Webster Financial had a net margin of 19.81% and a return on equity of 11.81%. The business had revenue of $1.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $671.91 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.50 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Webster Financial will post 5.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.04, for a total value of $384,320.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 237,049 shares in the company, valued at $11,387,833.96. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.04, for a total value of $384,320.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 237,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,387,833.96. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Charles L. Wilkins sold 5,000 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction on Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.07, for a total transaction of $245,350.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 45,157 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,215,853.99. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 14,650 shares of company stock worth $706,098. 0.88% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Webster Financial

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in shares of Webster Financial by 340.7% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 595 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 460 shares during the period. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Webster Financial during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in Webster Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Mather Group LLC. increased its stake in Webster Financial by 7,650.0% in the 2nd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 1,240 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 1,224 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Webster Financial in the 2nd quarter worth $69,000. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Webster Financial

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.