Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) Stock Holdings Lowered by Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc.

Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS - Free Report) by 33.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,175,223 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 585,184 shares during the period. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. owned about 0.69% of Webster Financial worth $64,896,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ acquired a new position in Webster Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Swiss National Bank raised its position in Webster Financial by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 337,100 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $18,615,000 after acquiring an additional 2,400 shares during the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in Webster Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $225,000. HighTower Advisors LLC raised its position in Webster Financial by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 32,155 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,776,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealthfront Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Webster Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $27,163,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.58% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on WBS shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $75.00 to $66.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $76.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $63.08.

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Webster Financial Trading Up 0.1 %

WBS traded up $0.04 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $50.90. 1,462,947 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,168,465. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. Webster Financial Co. has a 1 year low of $39.34 and a 1 year high of $65.77. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $56.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $54.17. The firm has a market cap of $8.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.28.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.08. Webster Financial had a net margin of 18.39% and a return on equity of 10.82%. The company had revenue of $661.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $687.53 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.46 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.14%. Webster Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.61%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Laurence C. Morse sold 13,217 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 18,808 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,110,988.56. This represents a 41.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.43, for a total transaction of $459,440.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 210,051 shares of the company's stock, valued at $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 own 0.88% of the company's stock.

About Webster Financial

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.