WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) Sets New 1-Year High – What’s Next?

WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $39.32 and last traded at $39.6220, with a volume of 80465 shares. The stock had previously closed at $39.03.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WSBC has been the subject of several research reports. Piper Sandler upped their target price on WesBanco from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and set a $41.00 price target on shares of WesBanco in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Weiss Ratings upgraded WesBanco from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $41.00 price objective on shares of WesBanco in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research raised WesBanco from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, WesBanco presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $40.25.

WesBanco Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $35.12 and a 200-day moving average of $34.99. The stock has a market cap of $3.84 billion, a PE ratio of 12.87 and a beta of 0.68.

WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.86 by $0.05. WesBanco had a return on equity of 9.76% and a net margin of 21.12%.The firm had revenue of $257.23 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $264.52 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.66 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that WesBanco, Inc. will post 3.59 EPS for the current year.

WesBanco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. WesBanco’s dividend payout ratio is 49.03%.

WesBanco announced that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, May 20th that authorizes the company to buyback 4,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Joseph R. Robinson acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $34.54 per share, for a total transaction of $34,540.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 19,068 shares in the company, valued at approximately $658,608.72. This represents a 5.53% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Lee J. Burdman acquired 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $33.60 per share, for a total transaction of $100,800.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 46,772 shares in the company, valued at $1,571,539.20. This trade represents a 6.85% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders bought 7,000 shares of company stock valued at $236,500 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.07% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On WesBanco

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WSBC. Covestor Ltd raised its stake in shares of WesBanco by 12,500.0% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 756 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 750 shares in the last quarter. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of WesBanco in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in WesBanco by 41.1% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,113 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 324 shares during the period. First Horizon Corp grew its holdings in WesBanco by 55.4% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 1,302 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 464 shares during the period. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. raised its position in WesBanco by 71.9% in the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,435 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.41% of the company’s stock.

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.