Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Sells 459,754 Shares of Webster Financial Corporation $WBS

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lowered its stake in Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS) by 25.9% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 1,318,502 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 459,754 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in Webster Financial were worth $74,917,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WBS. Amundi raised its holdings in Webster Financial by 699.7% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 137,740 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,100,000 after buying an additional 120,516 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Webster Financial by 166.1% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,027 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 641 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 48.3% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,032 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $156,000 after acquiring an additional 987 shares during the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 9.9% during the first quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 77,103 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,975,000 after purchasing an additional 6,948 shares during the period. Finally, Great Lakes Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 3,066.1% in the first quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC now owns 126,012 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,496,000 after purchasing an additional 122,032 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Webster Financial Price Performance

WBS stock opened at $57.14 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.86. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $59.78 and a 200-day moving average price of $54.84. Webster Financial Corporation has a 52-week low of $39.43 and a 52-week high of $63.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.59, a PEG ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 1.05.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.09. Webster Financial had a return on equity of 10.84% and a net margin of 20.06%.The company had revenue of $715.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $716.59 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.26 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Webster Financial Corporation will post 5.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Investors of record on Monday, August 11th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 32.45%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Webster Financial

In other Webster Financial news, Director William L. Atwell sold 16,823 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.20, for a total value of $995,921.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 30,915 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,830,168. The trade was a 35.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider James Mi Griffin sold 807 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.14, for a total transaction of $50,146.98. Following the sale, the insider owned 12,556 shares in the company, valued at approximately $780,229.84. The trade was a 6.04% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 36,445 shares of company stock worth $2,168,537 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WBS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $67.00 price target (up previously from $61.00) on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Webster Financial in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Webster Financial from $64.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $70.00 to $68.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Finally, Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Webster Financial in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $68.73.

Webster Financial 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.