Raymond James & Associates Has $12.51 Million Position in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Raymond James & Associates decreased its stake in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 268,397 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 9,741 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates’ holdings in Webster Financial were worth $12,510,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Webster Financial by 0.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 17,926,270 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $910,117,000 after acquiring an additional 54,841 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 6,237,482 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $316,678,000 after purchasing an additional 95,780 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 28.0% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,522,044 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $240,687,000 after purchasing an additional 1,206,575 shares during the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Webster Financial by 0.4% during the second quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 3,086,111 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $134,524,000 after buying an additional 13,487 shares during the period. Finally, 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 worth $115,096,000 after buying an additional 301,935 shares during the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Webster Financial from $58.00 to $55.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Webster Financial from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Webster Financial currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $57.85.

Insider Activity at Webster Financial

In other Webster Financial news, insider Daniel Bley sold 3,463 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.10, for a total value of $180,422.30. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 19,529 shares in the company, valued at $1,017,460.90. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Daniel Bley sold 3,463 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.10, for a total value of $180,422.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 19,529 shares in the company, valued at $1,017,460.90. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Mark Pettie sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.14, for a total transaction of $230,130.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 32,780 shares in the company, valued at $1,676,369.20. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 11,963 shares of company stock worth $620,272. Insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Webster Financial Stock Performance

Shares of WBS opened at $51.15 on Monday. Webster Financial Co. has a 52 week low of $36.51 and a 52 week high of $54.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $46.92 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $45.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.48, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.28.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $647.62 million during 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 period in the previous year, the company posted $1.55 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.