WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) Shares Gap Up on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC)’s share price gapped up before the market opened on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $31.74, but opened at $32.75. WesBanco shares last traded at $34.24, with a volume of 71,948 shares trading hands.

The financial services provider reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.54 by $0.17. WesBanco had a net margin of 14.79% and a return on equity of 5.75%.

WesBanco Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th were given a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.43%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. This is a positive change from WesBanco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. WesBanco’s payout ratio is presently 70.81%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WSBC has been the topic of several analyst reports. Raymond James raised shares of WesBanco from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $35.00 to $44.00 in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $39.00 price target on shares of WesBanco in a research report on Thursday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $38.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at WesBanco

In other WesBanco news, EVP Michael L. Perkins sold 1,125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.87, for a total value of $39,228.75. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 46,817 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,632,508.79. The trade was a 2.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 3.44% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On WesBanco

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of WesBanco by 2.4% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,419,070 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $42,268,000 after purchasing an additional 32,879 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. acquired a new position in shares of WesBanco during the third quarter worth $1,148,000. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of WesBanco by 25.8% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 695,487 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $20,712,000 after purchasing an additional 142,597 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new position in shares of WesBanco during the third quarter worth $212,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of WesBanco by 3.0% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 30,049 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $895,000 after purchasing an additional 867 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.41% of the company’s stock.

WesBanco Trading Up 5.3 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The business’s 50 day moving average is $33.75 and its 200 day moving average is $32.04. The stock has a market cap of $2.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.00 and a beta of 0.85.

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.