Fmr LLC Sells 383,585 Shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Fmr LLC decreased its position in shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 4.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,393,518 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 383,585 shares during the period. Fmr LLC’s holdings in Webster Financial were worth $391,222,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in WBS. Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 9.3% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 2,611 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $122,000 after buying an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its position in Webster Financial by 5.4% in the second quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 4,821 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $210,000 after acquiring an additional 248 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its stake in Webster Financial by 17.0% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,895 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $89,000 after acquiring an additional 276 shares during the last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV raised its position in Webster Financial by 8.5% during the third quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 3,976 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $185,000 after purchasing an additional 311 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 30.1% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,629 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 377 shares during the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Daniel Bley sold 3,463 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction on Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.10, for a total value of $180,422.30. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 19,529 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,017,460.90. This trade represents a 15.06 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Mark Pettie sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.14, for a total value of $230,130.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 32,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,676,369.20. This trade represents a 12.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 36,750 shares of company stock worth $2,074,367. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WBS has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Webster Financial from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Wedbush boosted their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $52.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. 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. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Webster Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Stephens set a $58.00 price objective on shares of Webster Financial in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $57.85.

Webster Financial Trading Down 0.4 %

WBS opened at $61.78 on Friday. Webster Financial Co. has a 52 week low of $39.33 and a 52 week high of $63.99. The company has a market capitalization of $10.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.02, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.27. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $52.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $47.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last released its quarterly earnings data 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). Webster Financial had a net margin of 18.80% and a return on equity of 11.03%. The firm had revenue of $647.62 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $677.72 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.55 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st were given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.59%. Webster Financial’s payout ratio is presently 36.28%.

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.