Alliancebernstein L.P. Lowers Stake in WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC)

Alliancebernstein L.P. lowered its holdings in shares of WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC - Free Report) by 49.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 64,046 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 62,727 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned approximately 0.10% of WesBanco worth $2,084,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Securities Inc. grew its holdings in WesBanco by 40.9% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 2,079 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $68,000 after buying an additional 603 shares in the last quarter. Roble Belko & Company Inc bought a new position in shares of WesBanco during the fourth quarter worth $78,000. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in WesBanco by 668.5% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,467 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $78,000 after acquiring an additional 2,146 shares in the last quarter. Hilltop National Bank increased its holdings in WesBanco by 19.6% in the 4th quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 2,518 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $82,000 after acquiring an additional 413 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kentucky Trust Co purchased a new stake in WesBanco in the 4th quarter worth $126,000. Institutional investors own 61.41% of the company's stock.

WesBanco Trading Up 3.7 %

WSBC stock traded up $1.03 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $28.99. 664,348 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 414,248. WesBanco, Inc. has a one year low of $25.56 and a one year high of $37.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.94 billion, a PE ratio of 12.94 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.93. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $31.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $32.76.

WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.54 by $0.17. WesBanco had a net margin of 15.89% and a return on equity of 6.30%. Equities research analysts expect that WesBanco, Inc. will post 3.24 EPS for the current year.

WesBanco Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.11%. WesBanco's dividend payout ratio is 66.07%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on WSBC. DA Davidson raised their price objective on WesBanco from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised WesBanco from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $40.00 to $44.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. StockNews.com upgraded WesBanco from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Piper Sandler started coverage on shares of WesBanco in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $37.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Raymond James lowered their price objective on shares of WesBanco from $44.00 to $38.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $39.43.

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.