Franklin Resources Inc. Has $142.78 Million Stock Position in WSFS Financial Co. (NASDAQ:WSFS)

Franklin Resources Inc. cut its position in WSFS Financial Co. (NASDAQ:WSFS - Free Report) by 8.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,782,098 shares of the bank's stock after selling 248,546 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 4.72% of WSFS Financial worth $142,777,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Mill Creek Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in WSFS Financial during the third quarter worth about $718,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of WSFS Financial by 30.6% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 36,773 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,875,000 after purchasing an additional 8,617 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC raised its stake in WSFS Financial by 47.9% during the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 114,154 shares of the bank's stock worth $5,821,000 after purchasing an additional 36,990 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC boosted its holdings in shares of WSFS Financial by 265.1% in the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 23,763 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,117,000 after purchasing an additional 17,254 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in WSFS Financial by 34.1% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 48,343 shares of the bank's stock valued at $2,272,000 after acquiring an additional 12,298 shares during the last quarter. 88.49% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

WSFS Financial Stock Performance

WSFS traded down $0.05 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $58.08. The company's stock had a trading volume of 238,206 shares, compared to its average volume of 274,532. WSFS Financial Co. has a fifty-two week low of $40.19 and a fifty-two week high of $62.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.42 billion, a PE ratio of 13.26 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $55.22 and a 200 day simple moving average of $51.79. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

WSFS Financial (NASDAQ:WSFS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $267.61 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $260.35 million. WSFS Financial had a return on equity of 10.56% and a net margin of 18.78%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.23 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that WSFS Financial Co. will post 4.27 EPS for the current year.

WSFS Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. WSFS Financial's payout ratio is 13.70%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Janney Montgomery Scott reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of WSFS Financial in a report on Monday, October 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $54.00 price target (down previously from $58.00) on shares of WSFS Financial in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $59.75.

WSFS Financial Company Profile

WSFS Financial Corporation operates as the savings and loan holding company for the Wilmington Savings Fund Society, FSB that provides various banking services in the United States. It operates through three segments: WSFS Bank, Cash Connect, and Wealth Management. It offers various deposit products, including savings accounts, demand deposits, interest-bearing demand deposits, money market deposit accounts, and certificates of deposit, as well as accepts jumbo certificates of deposit from individuals, businesses, and municipalities.