WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) Hits New 12-Month High – Time to Buy?

WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $38.10 and last traded at $37.78, with a volume of 350350 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $37.89.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on WSBC shares. DA Davidson downgraded shares of WesBanco from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 20th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of WesBanco in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Piper Sandler started coverage on WesBanco in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $42.00 target price on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $39.00.

WesBanco Stock Down 0.3%

The stock has a market capitalization of $3.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.25 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $34.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $32.61.

WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84. WesBanco had a return on equity of 8.88% and a net margin of 15.51%.The business had revenue of $265.78 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $265.53 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.71 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that WesBanco, Inc. will post 3.24 earnings per share for the current year.

WesBanco Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 5th were issued a $0.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 5th. This is a positive change from WesBanco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. WesBanco’s payout ratio is currently 73.43%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director F Eric Nelson, Jr. sold 752 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.37, for a total transaction of $25,094.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 2.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of WSBC. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of WesBanco by 41.1% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,113 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 324 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC grew its position in WesBanco by 77.9% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 877 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 384 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in WesBanco by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 24,864 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $794,000 after acquiring an additional 385 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of WesBanco by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 28,306 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $904,000 after acquiring an additional 403 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in shares of WesBanco by 9.4% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 5,011 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $167,000 after acquiring an additional 431 shares in the last quarter. 61.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

WesBanco Company Profile

WesBanco, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Wheeling, West Virginia, offering a full range of community banking services through its principal subsidiary, WesBanco Bank, Inc The company serves individual consumers, small‐ to mid‐sized businesses, nonprofit organizations and governmental entities with a relationship‐driven approach and an emphasis on local decision‐making. Through its diversified platform, WesBanco provides core banking functions such as deposit accounts, commercial and consumer lending, mortgage banking, treasury management and electronic banking services.

In addition to traditional banking products, WesBanco offers specialized services including trust and wealth management, investment advisory and insurance solutions.