Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) Shares Sold by New York State Common Retirement Fund

New York State Common Retirement Fund lessened its holdings in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 1.7% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 526,062 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 9,140 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund’s holdings in Webster Financial were worth $26,703,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale increased its holdings in Webster Financial by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 19,924 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $785,000 after buying an additional 263 shares during the period. Mariner LLC increased its holdings in Webster Financial by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 13,812 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $557,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its holdings in Webster Financial by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 13,537 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $546,000 after buying an additional 332 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its holdings in Webster Financial by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 76,239 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,073,000 after buying an additional 390 shares during the period. Finally, John G Ullman & Associates Inc. increased its holdings in Webster Financial by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. now owns 31,850 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,617,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Webster Financial

In other Webster Financial news, COO Luis Massiani sold 13,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.63, for a total value of $697,005.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 89,621 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,627,132.23. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Webster Financial news, COO Luis Massiani sold 13,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.63, for a total value of $697,005.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 89,621 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,627,132.23. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Daniel Bley sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.60, for a total value of $95,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 27,955 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,330,658. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 25,975 shares of company stock worth $1,341,095. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Webster Financial Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:WBS opened at $45.02 on Friday. Webster Financial Co. has a 1 year low of $31.03 and a 1 year high of $53.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.38 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $47.88 and its 200-day moving average price is $46.48.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by ($0.02). Webster Financial had a net margin of 21.09% and a return on equity of 12.55%. The business had revenue of $667.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $680.72 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.49 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 6th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.55%. Webster Financial’s payout ratio is currently 32.79%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on WBS. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $51.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $64.00 to $58.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $65.00 to $56.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Webster Financial in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $65.00 to $63.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $56.23.

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.