Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve analysts that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $60.31.

WBS has been the topic of several analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Webster Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Webster Financial from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Stephens set a $58.00 price target on shares of Webster Financial in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $58.00 to $55.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Webster Financial from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd.

Insider Activity at Webster Financial

In related news, insider Daniel Bley sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.91, for a total transaction of $30,955.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 17,279 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,069,742.89. This trade represents a 2.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Mark Pettie sold 4,500 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.14, for a total transaction of $230,130.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 32,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,676,369.20. This represents a 12.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 37,250 shares of company stock worth $2,105,322 in the last three months. 0.88% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Webster Financial

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp raised its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 13.5% in the second quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 170,852 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,447,000 after buying an additional 20,300 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in Webster Financial by 12.9% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,640,425 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $115,096,000 after purchasing an additional 301,935 shares in the last quarter. M&G PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 9.4% in the 3rd quarter. M&G PLC now owns 207,297 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,743,000 after acquiring an additional 17,746 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 1,482.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 339,246 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $14,801,000 after purchasing an additional 317,814 shares during the period. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. bought a new position in Webster Financial during the second quarter valued at $4,582,000. Institutional investors own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Webster Financial Trading Down 0.8 %

Webster Financial stock opened at $54.13 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.28 billion, a PE ratio of 12.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The business’s fifty day moving average is $56.60 and its 200 day moving average is $48.93. Webster Financial has a one year low of $39.33 and a one year high of $63.99.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.35 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $647.62 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 previous year, the company posted $1.55 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Webster Financial will post 5.24 EPS for the current year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.96%. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.28%.

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.