Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and nine have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $60.31.

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. StockNews.com raised shares of Webster Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Wedbush lifted their price objective on Webster Financial from $52.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Webster Financial from $57.00 to $54.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Stephens set a $58.00 target price on Webster Financial in a research note on Thursday, October 17th.

Webster Financial Stock Performance

Webster Financial stock opened at $55.82 on Friday. Webster Financial has a 1-year low of $39.33 and a 1-year high of $63.99. The firm has a market cap of $9.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.66, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $57.19 and a 200-day moving average of $49.40.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $647.62 million during 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 business posted $1.55 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Webster Financial will post 5.24 EPS for the current year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st were paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. Webster Financial’s payout ratio is 36.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Webster Financial

In other news, insider Daniel Bley sold 3,463 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.10, for a total transaction of $180,422.30. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 19,529 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,017,460.90. This represents a 15.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Javier L. Evans sold 10,137 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.41, for a total value of $581,965.17. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 22,657 shares in the company, valued at $1,300,738.37. This trade represents a 30.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. 0.72% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Webster Financial

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp lifted its position in Webster Financial by 13.5% during the second quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 170,852 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,447,000 after purchasing an additional 20,300 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 12.9% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,640,425 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $115,096,000 after buying an additional 301,935 shares during the period. M&G PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 9.4% during the 3rd quarter. M&G PLC now owns 207,297 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,743,000 after buying an additional 17,746 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 1,482.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 339,246 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $14,801,000 after buying an additional 317,814 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Webster Financial in the second quarter worth $4,582,000. Institutional investors own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

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.