Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS) Receives $69.69 Consensus PT from Brokerages

Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the sixteen ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have given a hold recommendation and thirteen have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $69.8462.

WBS has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Webster Financial from $64.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $70.00 to $68.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 20th. Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $65.00 price objective (down from $68.00) on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Monday, October 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Webster Financial from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Elzbieta Cieslik sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.58, for a total transaction of $123,160.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 14,894 shares in the company, valued at approximately $917,172.52. This trade represents a 11.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider James Mi Griffin sold 807 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.14, for a total transaction of $50,146.98. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 12,556 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $780,229.84. This trade represents a 6.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 3,807 shares of company stock worth $234,927 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Webster Financial

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BOKF NA bought a new position in shares of Webster Financial in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in Webster Financial in the third quarter worth about $29,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management bought a new position in Webster Financial in the first quarter worth about $25,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of Webster Financial during the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 327.2% in the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 739 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 566 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Webster Financial Stock Performance

NYSE WBS opened at $56.44 on Monday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $58.42 and its 200-day moving average price is $56.76. Webster Financial has a fifty-two week low of $39.43 and a fifty-two week high of $63.99. The company has a market cap of $9.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.51, a P/E/G ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last released its earnings results on Friday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $756.06 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $725.22 million. Webster Financial had a net margin of 21.32% and a return on equity of 11.07%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.34 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Webster Financial will post 5.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 10th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 10th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. Webster Financial’s payout ratio is 29.80%.

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.