Retirement Systems of Alabama Sells 22,257 Shares of Webster Financial Corporation $WBS

Retirement Systems of Alabama reduced its position in Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS) by 4.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 476,342 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 22,257 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in Webster Financial were worth $29,981,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WBS. Norges Bank bought a new position in Webster Financial during the second quarter worth about $131,780,000. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. raised its position in shares of Webster Financial by 7,442.8% in the third quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 2,032,937 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $120,838,000 after purchasing an additional 2,005,985 shares during the period. 140 Summer Partners LP purchased a new stake in shares of Webster Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $75,465,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 221.0% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,565,623 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $85,483,000 after buying an additional 1,077,819 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can boosted its holdings in Webster Financial by 65.2% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 2,070,013 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $123,042,000 after buying an additional 817,218 shares during the period. 85.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Webster Financial Stock Performance

Shares of WBS opened at $69.43 on Wednesday. Webster Financial Corporation has a 12-month low of $39.43 and a 12-month high of $74.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The company has a market cap of $11.19 billion, a PE ratio of 11.75 and a beta of 1.03. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $69.52 and a 200-day moving average price of $63.54.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $760.48 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $731.95 million. Webster Financial had a net margin of 22.67% and a return on equity of 11.10%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.43 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Webster Financial Corporation will post 5.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 9th were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.07%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on WBS. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $75.00 price target on Webster Financial in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. TD Cowen cut Webster Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Truist Financial lowered Webster Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $74.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Barclays set a $75.00 price objective on Webster Financial in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $74.50.

About Webster Financial

Webster Financial Corporation is a bank holding company headquartered in Waterbury, Connecticut. Through its principal subsidiary, Webster Bank, N.A., the company offers a broad range of banking products and financial services to individuals, small businesses, and middle-market commercial clients. Key offerings include deposit accounts, residential and commercial real estate lending, equipment finance, treasury management, and payment processing solutions.

In addition to traditional banking services, Webster Financial provides wealth management and insurance products designed to help clients plan for retirement, preserve assets, and manage risk.