Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Buys New Shares in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund purchased 4,218 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $233,000.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ acquired a new stake in shares of Webster Financial during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Webster Financial during the fourth quarter valued at about $43,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in Webster Financial by 88.1% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,119 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $62,000 after acquiring an additional 524 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in shares of Webster Financial in the 3rd quarter worth about $53,000. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of Webster Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $105,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on WBS. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $75.00 to $66.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. UBS Group initiated coverage on Webster Financial in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $76.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Webster Financial from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $63.36.

Insider Transactions at Webster Financial

In related news, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.43, for a total transaction of $459,440.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 210,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,063,228.93. This represents a 3.67 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Laurence C. Morse sold 13,217 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.07, for a total value of $780,728.19. Following the transaction, the director now 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. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Webster Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WBS opened at $51.04 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. Webster Financial Co. has a fifty-two week low of $39.34 and a fifty-two week high of $63.99. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $55.76 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $54.44. The firm has a market cap of $8.75 billion, a PE ratio of 11.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.28.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $661.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $687.53 million. Webster Financial had a net margin of 18.39% and a return on equity of 10.82%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.46 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid 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 3.13%. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.61%.

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.