M&T Bank Corp Buys 460 Shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

M&T Bank Corp raised its position in shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 7.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,615 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 460 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp’s holdings in Webster Financial were worth $365,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in Webster Financial by 9.3% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 2,611 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $122,000 after acquiring an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. Atria Investments Inc increased its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 3.8% in the third quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 21,107 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $984,000 after purchasing an additional 772 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new stake in shares of Webster Financial in the third quarter valued at approximately $286,000. Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 29.6% during the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 236,252 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,012,000 after buying an additional 53,950 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its holdings in Webster Financial by 26.1% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 212,272 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,894,000 after buying an additional 44,000 shares during the period. 85.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Webster Financial Stock Up 3.9 %

Shares of NYSE:WBS opened at $50.40 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.64 billion, a PE ratio of 11.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.84. Webster Financial Co. has a 52-week low of $39.34 and a 52-week high of $63.99. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $56.75 and a 200 day moving average of $54.02.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $661.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $687.53 million. Webster Financial had a return on equity of 10.82% and a net margin of 18.39%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.46 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.17%. Webster Financial’s payout ratio is 36.61%.

Insider Activity

In other Webster Financial news, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.43, for a total transaction of $459,440.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 210,051 shares in the company, valued at $12,063,228.93. This represents a 3.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Laurence C. Morse sold 13,217 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.07, for a total value of $780,728.19. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 18,808 shares in the company, valued at $1,110,988.56. This trade represents a 41.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.88% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on WBS shares. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Webster Financial from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Barclays raised their target price on Webster Financial from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Webster Financial from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Webster Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $75.00 to $66.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $63.08.

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.