Brokerages Set Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) Price Target at $57.85

Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and twelve have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $57.85.

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WBS shares. Barclays started coverage on Webster Financial in a research note on Friday, March 8th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $70.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Webster Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $60.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $64.00 price objective on shares of Webster Financial in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered 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. Finally, Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Webster Financial news, insider Charles L. Wilkins sold 3,966 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.56, for a total transaction of $204,486.96. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 49,528 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,553,663.68. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, insider Christopher J. Motl sold 10,475 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.40, for a total value of $548,890.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 63,306 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,317,234.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Charles L. Wilkins sold 3,966 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.56, for a total value of $204,486.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 49,528 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,553,663.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 29,941 shares of company stock valued at $1,545,582. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,278,976 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $51,556,000 after purchasing an additional 21,026 shares during the period. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV increased its position in shares of Webster Financial by 98.1% in the 4th quarter. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 149,258 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,576,000 after buying an additional 73,924 shares in the last quarter. FDx Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Webster Financial by 7.6% in the 3rd quarter. FDx Advisors Inc. now owns 5,753 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $232,000 after buying an additional 408 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Webster Financial by 58.2% in the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 319,379 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $12,874,000 after buying an additional 117,437 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Kokusai Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Webster Financial by 15.7% in the 3rd quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Kokusai Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 83,725 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,375,000 after buying an additional 11,387 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Webster Financial Trading Up 2.5 %

Shares of WBS opened at $46.39 on Friday. Webster Financial has a 12-month low of $31.03 and a 12-month high of $53.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.49, a P/E/G ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 1.33. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $48.00 and its 200 day moving average price is $46.35.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.46 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.48 by ($0.02). Webster Financial had a net margin of 22.01% and a return on equity of 13.05%. The company had revenue of $996.96 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $674.82 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.60 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Webster Financial will post 5.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 5th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 2nd. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 32.72%.

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.