Jane Street Group LLC Lowers Stake in WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC)

Jane Street Group LLC decreased its position in shares of WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC - Free Report) by 19.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 114,167 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 28,190 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC owned approximately 0.17% of WesBanco worth $3,400,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WSBC. Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new position in shares of WesBanco during the 3rd quarter valued at about $116,114,000. State Street Corp grew its position in WesBanco by 1.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,934,453 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $58,313,000 after acquiring an additional 35,030 shares during the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp raised its stake in shares of WesBanco by 41.4% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 41,658 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,241,000 after acquiring an additional 12,190 shares in the last quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP bought a new stake in shares of WesBanco in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $780,000. Finally, Readystate Asset Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of WesBanco in the 3rd quarter valued at $661,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.41% of the company's stock.

WesBanco Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:WSBC traded up $0.47 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $33.31. 2,033,832 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 271,275. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The business's 50 day moving average is $33.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $31.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.23 billion, a PE ratio of 15.94 and a beta of 0.84. WesBanco, Inc. has a one year low of $25.56 and a one year high of $37.36.

WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $243.34 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $152.40 million. WesBanco had a return on equity of 5.75% and a net margin of 14.79%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.59 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that WesBanco, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

WesBanco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th will be paid a $0.37 dividend. This is a positive change from WesBanco's previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.44%. WesBanco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 70.81%.

Insider Activity at WesBanco

In other WesBanco news, EVP Michael L. Perkins sold 1,125 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.87, for a total value of $39,228.75. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 46,817 shares in the company, valued at $1,632,508.79. This trade represents a 2.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 3.44% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Stephens lifted their target price on shares of WesBanco from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Raymond James raised WesBanco from an "outperform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $35.00 to $44.00 in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $35.00 price target on shares of WesBanco in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $37.83.

WesBanco Company 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.