Empowered Funds LLC Sells 45,504 Shares of WesBanco, Inc. $WSBC

Empowered Funds LLC decreased its stake in WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC) by 14.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 260,366 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 45,504 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC owned about 0.27% of WesBanco worth $8,235,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of WSBC. Federated Hermes Inc. bought a new stake in WesBanco in the first quarter worth $26,000. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. bought a new stake in shares of WesBanco in the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of WesBanco by 132.5% during the 1st quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 895 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 510 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its holdings in WesBanco by 573.1% during the 1st quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,878 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 1,599 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its holdings in WesBanco by 1,553.3% during the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,017 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 1,895 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on WSBC. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of WesBanco in a research note on Tuesday. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on WesBanco from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 10th. DA Davidson lowered WesBanco from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 20th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut WesBanco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $39.17.

WesBanco Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WSBC opened at $30.42 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $31.53 and its 200-day simple moving average is $31.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.94. WesBanco, Inc. has a one year low of $26.42 and a one year high of $37.36. The firm has a market cap of $2.92 billion, a PE ratio of 15.52 and a beta of 0.89.

WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $261.58 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $263.38 million. WesBanco had a return on equity of 8.55% and a net margin of 13.91%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.54 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that WesBanco, Inc. will post 3.24 EPS for the current year.

WesBanco Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 5th will be given a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 5th. This is a positive change from WesBanco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. WesBanco’s dividend payout ratio is currently 75.51%.

Insider Buying and Selling at WesBanco

In other WesBanco news, Director James W. Cornelsen bought 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 17th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $25.00 per share, with a total value of $250,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $250,000. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO K Weiss Daniel purchased 4,000 shares of WesBanco stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 17th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $25.00 per share, with a total value of $100,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer owned 4,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $100,000. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have purchased 52,921 shares of company stock worth $1,339,995. Insiders own 2.80% of the company’s stock.

WesBanco Profile

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.