Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) Receives Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS - Get Free Report) have earned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the ten brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $62.73.

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on WBS shares. StockNews.com raised Webster Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, January 11th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $75.00 to $60.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $70.00 to $65.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada set a $60.00 price objective on Webster Financial and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $80.00 to $72.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th.

Webster Financial Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE WBS traded down $0.40 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $47.50. 1,787,904 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,274,814. The firm has a market cap of $7.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.05. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $49.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $54.39. Webster Financial has a 12-month low of $39.34 and a 12-month high of $63.99. 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 issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.38 by ($0.08). Webster Financial had a return on equity of 10.82% and a net margin of 18.39%. The company had revenue of $704.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $708.46 million. As a group, analysts expect that Webster Financial will post 5.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.37%. Webster Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 36.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Webster Financial news, Director Laurence C. Morse sold 13,217 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.07, for a total value of $780,728.19. Following the completion of the sale, 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Webster Financial

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Barclays PLC grew its stake in Webster Financial by 36.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 297,834 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $13,883,000 after purchasing an additional 79,556 shares during the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Webster Financial in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $305,000. Tidal Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 58.3% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 31,599 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,473,000 after acquiring an additional 11,639 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Webster Financial by 14.8% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,045 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $113,000 after acquiring an additional 264 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Everence Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Webster Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $252,000. Institutional investors own 85.58% of the company's stock.

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.