Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 108,623 Shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Vanguard Group Inc. cut its position in shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 0.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,871,429 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 108,623 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 10.41% of Webster Financial worth $907,154,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Spire Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 79.1% in the fourth quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 607 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 268 shares in the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Webster Financial in the 4th quarter worth $42,000. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Webster Financial in the 4th quarter worth $45,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 29.7% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,114 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 255 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in shares of Webster Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $69,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Daniel Bley sold 2,280 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.80, for a total value of $102,144.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 28,693 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,285,446.40. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Webster Financial from $65.00 to $56.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Barclays lowered their price target on Webster Financial from $70.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $65.00 to $63.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $64.00 to $58.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $57.00 to $54.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $57.00.

Webster Financial Price Performance

Shares of WBS stock opened at $40.86 on Friday. Webster Financial Co. has a twelve month low of $36.22 and a twelve month high of $53.39. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $44.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $47.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.37, a P/E/G ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 1.31.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by ($0.02). Webster Financial had a return on equity of 12.55% and a net margin of 21.09%. The business had revenue of $667.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $680.72 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.49 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 16th. Investors of record on Monday, May 6th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.92%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 3rd. Webster Financial’s payout ratio is 32.79%.

Webster Financial 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.