Insider Selling: Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) CEO Sells $459,440.00 in Stock

Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.43, for a total value of $459,440.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 210,051 shares in the company, valued at $12,063,228.93. The trade was a 3.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Webster Financial Trading Down 3.3 %

Shares of WBS stock opened at $55.76 on Monday. Webster Financial Co. has a 1 year low of $39.33 and a 1 year high of $63.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $57.58 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $53.39. The company has a market cap of $9.56 billion, a PE ratio of 12.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.29.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.08. Webster Financial had a return on equity of 10.82% and a net margin of 18.39%. The business had revenue of $661.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $687.53 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.46 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.87%. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.61%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on WBS shares. StockNews.com upgraded Webster Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 11th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Webster Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $70.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Webster Financial from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays boosted their target price on Webster Financial from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on Webster Financial in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $76.00 target price on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Webster Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $62.08.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Webster Financial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ bought a new position in shares of Webster Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of Webster Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Webster Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in shares of Webster Financial during the third quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Finally, Spurstone Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Webster Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $61,000. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.