Webster Financial Corporation $WBS Shares Bought by Capital International Investors

Capital International Investors grew its stake in shares of Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS) by 0.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 4,177,281 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 16,676 shares during the quarter. Capital International Investors’ holdings in Webster Financial were worth $263,058,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,812,965 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $464,402,000 after acquiring an additional 189,399 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in Webster Financial by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,359,474 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $318,567,000 after purchasing an additional 63,403 shares in the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC increased its position in Webster Financial by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 3,163,124 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $188,016,000 after purchasing an additional 18,860 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Webster Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $142,035,000. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can increased its position in Webster Financial by 65.2% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 2,070,013 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $123,042,000 after purchasing an additional 817,218 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Webster Financial Stock Performance

WBS stock opened at $72.29 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The firm has a market cap of $11.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.83 and a beta of 1.01. Webster Financial Corporation has a 12-month low of $50.66 and a 12-month high of $74.00. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $71.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $68.09.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last posted 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. The business had revenue of $764.05 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $735.26 million. Webster Financial had a return on equity of 11.31% and a net margin of 22.95%.The business’s revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.30 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Webster Financial Corporation will post 6.59 EPS for the current year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on WBS shares. Raymond James Financial downgraded shares of Webster Financial from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Webster Financial from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Santander cut Webster Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Citigroup cut Webster Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $75.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on Webster Financial in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $69.00 target price for the company. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Webster Financial currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target 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.