Avantax Planning Partners Inc. Acquires 756 Shares of WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC)

Avantax Planning Partners Inc. raised its holdings in shares of WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC) by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 48,473 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 756 shares during the period. Avantax Planning Partners Inc.’s holdings in WesBanco were worth $1,577,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of WesBanco by 2.4% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,419,070 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $42,268,000 after purchasing an additional 32,879 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. bought a new position in shares of WesBanco during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,148,000. FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of WesBanco by 25.8% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 695,487 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $20,712,000 after buying an additional 142,597 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of WesBanco during the third quarter valued at approximately $212,000. Finally, Magnolia Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of WesBanco during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $269,000. Institutional investors own 61.41% of the company’s stock.

WesBanco Trading Down 1.6 %

Shares of WSBC stock opened at $30.56 on Wednesday. WesBanco, Inc. has a 12-month low of $25.56 and a 12-month high of $37.36. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $33.86 and its 200 day moving average is $32.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.64 and a beta of 0.84.

WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.54 by $0.17. WesBanco had a net margin of 15.89% and a return on equity of 6.30%. Research analysts expect that WesBanco, Inc. will post 3.24 earnings per share for the current year.

WesBanco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.84%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. WesBanco’s dividend payout ratio is currently 66.07%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on WSBC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of WesBanco from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the company from $40.00 to $44.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. DA Davidson increased their price target on shares of WesBanco from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Raymond James upgraded shares of WesBanco from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $35.00 to $44.00 in a report on Friday, December 6th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of WesBanco from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $39.00 price target on shares of WesBanco in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $40.83.

About WesBanco

WesBanco, Inc operates as the bank holding company for WesBanco Bank, Inc that provides retail banking, corporate banking, personal and corporate trust, brokerage, mortgage banking, and insurance services to individuals and businesses in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Community Banking, and Trust and Investment Services.