Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Friday morning.

WBS has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Webster Financial from $57.00 to $54.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 30th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Barclays boosted their price target on Webster Financial from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Wedbush raised their price objective on Webster Financial from $52.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $59.08.

Webster Financial Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of Webster Financial stock opened at $60.01 on Friday. 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 has a fifty day simple moving average of $54.33 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $48.11. Webster Financial has a 1 year low of $39.33 and a 1 year high of $63.99. The company has a market capitalization of $10.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.61, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.29.

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

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.67%. Webster Financial’s payout ratio is presently 36.28%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Albert Jen-Wen Wang sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.43, for a total value of $209,720.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 14,273 shares in the company, valued at $748,333.39. This trade represents a 21.89 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Daniel Bley sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.91, for a total transaction of $30,955.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 17,279 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,069,742.89. The trade was a 2.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 37,250 shares of company stock worth $2,105,322. Insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Webster Financial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WBS. Tidal Investments LLC raised its holdings in Webster Financial by 58.3% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 31,599 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,473,000 after purchasing an additional 11,639 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Webster Financial by 6.2% in the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 19,158 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $893,000 after buying an additional 1,114 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in Webster Financial during the third quarter valued at $305,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Webster Financial by 1.9% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,969,928 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $138,465,000 after acquiring an additional 54,613 shares during the last quarter. Finally, M&T Bank Corp grew its holdings in Webster Financial by 6.6% during the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 6,155 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $287,000 after acquiring an additional 383 shares during the period. 85.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.