NorthRock Partners LLC Buys New Stake in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

NorthRock Partners LLC bought a new stake in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 9,605 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $530,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC grew its stake in Webster Financial by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,493,426 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $469,007,000 after buying an additional 99,908 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Webster Financial by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,620,818 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $365,601,000 after buying an additional 45,310 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its stake in Webster Financial by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,130,379 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $228,000,000 after buying an additional 35,039 shares during the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC grew its stake in Webster Financial by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 3,154,160 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $174,173,000 after buying an additional 116,508 shares during the last quarter. Finally, T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Webster Financial by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,948,701 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $162,828,000 after buying an additional 114,375 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Webster Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WBS opened at $52.92 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $48.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $54.32. Webster Financial Co. has a fifty-two week low of $39.34 and a fifty-two week high of $63.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.84.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.38 by ($0.08). Webster Financial had a net margin of 18.39% and a return on equity of 10.82%. The business had revenue of $704.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $708.46 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.35 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.88 EPS for the current year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 12th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.02%. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.04%.

Webster Financial announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, May 1st that permits the company to repurchase $700.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to repurchase up to 8.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on WBS shares. Royal Bank of Canada set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Webster Financial and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $75.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Raymond James reduced their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $65.00 to $58.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $75.00 to $66.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Tuesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $61.00 target price on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $62.58.

Insider Activity at Webster Financial

In related news, Director Laurence C. Morse sold 13,217 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.07, for a total value of $780,728.19. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 18,808 shares in the company, valued at $1,110,988.56. This represents a 41.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.43, for a total transaction of $459,440.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 210,051 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,063,228.93. This trade represents a 3.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 24,217 shares of company stock worth $1,386,244 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

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.