Private Advisor Group LLC Sells 4,432 Shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Private Advisor Group LLC trimmed its position in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 20.9% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 16,811 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 4,432 shares during the quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Webster Financial were worth $733,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Webster Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $97,217,000. Azora Capital LP boosted its position in shares of Webster Financial by 146.3% during the 4th quarter. Azora Capital LP now owns 1,477,198 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $74,983,000 after acquiring an additional 877,540 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 39.5% during the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 1,477,642 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $75,006,000 after purchasing an additional 418,716 shares in the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment bought a new position in shares of Webster Financial in the fourth quarter worth approximately $20,471,000. Finally, Earnest Partners LLC raised its stake in Webster Financial by 11.2% in the first quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 3,072,624 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $155,997,000 after purchasing an additional 308,455 shares in the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WBS has been the topic of several research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $58.00 to $55.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Morgan Stanley cut Webster Financial from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $54.00 to $57.00 in a report on Monday, August 5th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Webster Financial from $65.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 24th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on Webster Financial from $54.00 to $51.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $56.00 to $51.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $55.36.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Jason A. Soto sold 1,650 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.32, for a total transaction of $76,428.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 20,539 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $951,366.48. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.04, for a total transaction of $384,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 237,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,387,833.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Jason A. Soto sold 1,650 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.32, for a total transaction of $76,428.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 20,539 shares in the company, valued at approximately $951,366.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 14,650 shares of company stock valued at $706,098. Insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Webster Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WBS opened at $45.97 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $45.97 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $45.65. Webster Financial Co. has a fifty-two week low of $36.36 and a fifty-two week high of $53.39. The company has a market capitalization of $7.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.40, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.28.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.34 by ($0.08). Webster Financial had a return on equity of 11.81% and a net margin of 19.81%. The company had revenue of $1.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $671.91 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.50 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 29th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 29th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.48%. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.79%.

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.