John R. Ciulla Sells 8,000 Shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) Stock

Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS - Get Free Report) CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.43, for a total transaction of $459,440.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 210,051 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,063,228.93. The trade was a 3.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Webster Financial Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:WBS traded down $0.28 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $55.42. 881,795 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 950,414. The firm has a market cap of $9.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.68, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.29. Webster Financial Co. has a 52-week low of $39.33 and a 52-week high of $63.99. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $57.52 and its 200 day simple moving average is $53.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.84.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 analysts' expectations of $687.53 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.46 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.88 EPS for the current year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.89%. Webster Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 36.61%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WBS. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ acquired a new stake in shares of Webster Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Webster Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in Webster Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Webster Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $61,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in shares of Webster Financial by 88.1% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,119 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $62,000 after acquiring an additional 524 shares in the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on WBS. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Webster Financial from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays lifted their target price on Webster Financial from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. StockNews.com upgraded Webster Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, January 11th. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on Webster Financial in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $76.00 price objective on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $62.08.

Webster Financial Company Profile

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.