Norges Bank Acquires New Stake in Webster Financial Corporation $WBS

Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm acquired 2,256,666 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $142,035,000. Norges Bank owned approximately 1.40% of Webster Financial as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Grove Bank & Trust increased its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 18.7% in the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 1,005 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $63,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 39.7% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 560 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares in the last quarter. Curi Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Curi Capital LLC now owns 68,500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,740,000 after purchasing an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 27.9% in the 3rd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 839 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 8,160 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $514,000 after purchasing an additional 199 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Webster Financial Stock Performance

NYSE:WBS opened at $72.17 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $71.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $67.85. Webster Financial Corporation has a 52-week low of $50.66 and a 52-week high of $74.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.69 billion, a PE ratio of 11.81 and a beta of 1.00.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.53 by $0.04. Webster Financial had a return on equity of 11.31% and a net margin of 22.95%.The business had revenue of $764.05 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $735.26 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.30 earnings per share. Webster Financial’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Webster Financial Corporation will post 6.59 EPS for the current year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. Webster Financial’s payout ratio is currently 26.19%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on WBS. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered Webster Financial from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $75.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. UBS Group began coverage on Webster Financial in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $69.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised Webster Financial from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Truist Financial lowered Webster Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $74.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Barclays set a $75.00 price objective on Webster Financial in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Webster Financial has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $73.96.

Webster Financial Profile

Webster Financial Corporation is a bank holding company headquartered in Waterbury, Connecticut. Through its principal subsidiary, Webster Bank, N.A., the company offers a broad range of banking products and financial services to individuals, small businesses, and middle-market commercial clients. Key offerings include deposit accounts, residential and commercial real estate lending, equipment finance, treasury management, and payment processing solutions.

In addition to traditional banking services, Webster Financial provides wealth management and insurance products designed to help clients plan for retirement, preserve assets, and manage risk.