Laurence C. Morse Sells 13,217 Shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) Stock

Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) Director Laurence C. Morse sold 13,217 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.07, for a total transaction of $780,728.19. Following the transaction, the director now owns 18,808 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,110,988.56. This represents a 41.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

Webster Financial Stock Down 3.3 %

Webster Financial stock opened at $55.76 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $9.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. Webster Financial Co. has a twelve month low of $39.33 and a twelve month high of $63.99. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $57.58 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $53.25.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $661.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $687.53 million. Webster Financial had a net margin of 18.39% and a return on equity of 10.82%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.46 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.87 EPS for the current year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.87%. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.61%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in WBS. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ bought a new position in shares of Webster Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of Webster Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Webster Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $43,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in shares of Webster Financial during the third quarter worth approximately $53,000. Finally, Spurstone Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Webster Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $61,000. 85.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Webster Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $70.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Webster Financial in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $76.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Webster Financial currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $62.08.

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.