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

Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and twelve have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $57.85.

WBS has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Webster Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $60.00 to $65.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on Webster Financial from $65.00 to $56.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 8th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on Webster Financial from $59.00 to $57.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. StockNews.com cut Webster Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Barclays initiated coverage on Webster Financial in a report on Friday, March 8th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $70.00 target price on the stock.

Insider Activity at Webster Financial

In related news, COO Luis Massiani sold 13,500 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.63, for a total transaction of $697,005.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 89,621 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,627,132.23. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, COO Luis Massiani sold 13,500 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.63, for a total transaction of $697,005.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 89,621 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,627,132.23. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Daniel Bley sold 2,000 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.60, for a total value of $95,200.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 27,955 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,330,658. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 29,941 shares of company stock valued at $1,545,582. Insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Webster Financial

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WBS. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in Webster Financial during the first quarter valued at about $29,000. Spire Wealth Management raised its holdings in Webster Financial by 79.1% during the fourth quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 607 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 268 shares in the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new position in Webster Financial during the third quarter valued at about $32,000. Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new position in Webster Financial during the second quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Webster Financial by 9,388.9% during the second quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 854 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 845 shares in the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Webster Financial Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of WBS stock opened at $45.30 on Friday. Webster Financial has a 1 year low of $31.03 and a 1 year high of $53.39. The stock has a market cap of $7.78 billion, a PE ratio of 9.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 1.33. The business’s fifty day moving average is $48.01 and its 200-day moving average is $46.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.46 earnings per share (EPS) 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 firm had revenue of $996.96 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $674.82 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.60 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Webster Financial will post 5.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 16th. Investors of record on Monday, February 5th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 2nd. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.53%. Webster Financial’s payout ratio is 32.72%.

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.