Tidal Investments LLC Acquires 11,639 Shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Tidal Investments LLC raised its holdings in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 58.3% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 31,599 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 11,639 shares during the quarter. Tidal Investments LLC’s holdings in Webster Financial were worth $1,473,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WBS. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Webster Financial in the third quarter valued at $27,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 340.7% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 595 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 460 shares during the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Webster Financial in the second quarter valued at about $32,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of Webster Financial in the third quarter valued at about $53,000. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 117.9% in the third quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 1,268 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 686 shares during the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Webster Financial Price Performance

WBS opened at $57.71 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $9.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.09, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $56.26 and a 200-day moving average price of $48.85. Webster Financial Co. has a twelve month low of $39.33 and a twelve month high of $63.99.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.35 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $647.62 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 previous year, the business earned $1.55 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.24 EPS for the current year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.77%. Webster Financial’s payout ratio is 36.28%.

Insider Transactions at Webster Financial

In other news, insider Daniel Bley sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.91, for a total value of $30,955.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 17,279 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,069,742.89. This trade represents a 2.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Lauren States sold 1,650 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.60, for a total transaction of $99,990.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 15,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $910,393.80. This trade represents a 9.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 37,250 shares of company stock worth $2,105,322 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $57.00 to $54.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 30th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Stephens set a $58.00 target price on shares of Webster Financial in a report on Thursday, October 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $58.00 to $55.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $60.31.

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.