Barclays PLC Has $13.88 Million Holdings in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 36.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 297,834 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 79,556 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC’s holdings in Webster Financial were worth $13,883,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in Webster Financial in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 340.7% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 595 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 460 shares during the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Webster Financial in the second quarter valued at $32,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in Webster Financial during the third quarter worth $53,000. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. raised its position in Webster Financial by 117.9% during the third quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 1,268 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $59,000 after acquiring an additional 686 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Webster Financial Stock Performance

WBS opened at $58.96 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $55.72 and a 200 day simple moving average of $48.65. Webster Financial Co. has a 1 year low of $39.33 and a 1 year high of $63.99. The company has a market capitalization of $10.11 billion, a PE ratio of 13.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.29.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by ($0.01). Webster Financial had a net margin of 18.80% and a return on equity of 11.03%. The business had revenue of $647.62 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $677.72 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.55 EPS. Research analysts expect that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.24 EPS for the current year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.71%. Webster Financial’s payout ratio is presently 36.28%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on WBS shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Morgan Stanley reduced 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. StockNews.com upgraded Webster Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Wedbush lifted their target price on Webster Financial from $52.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Webster Financial from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Webster Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $59.00.

Insider Transactions at Webster Financial

In other news, Director Mark Pettie sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.14, for a total transaction of $230,130.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 32,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,676,369.20. This represents a 12.07 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Daniel Bley sold 3,463 shares of the business’s 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 directly owns 19,529 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,017,460.90. This trade represents a 15.06 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 37,250 shares of company stock valued at $2,105,322. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.