Verition Fund Management LLC Cuts Position in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Verition Fund Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS - Free Report) by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 674,938 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 13,370 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC owned about 0.39% of Webster Financial worth $31,459,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of WBS. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Webster Financial by 25.6% during the first quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 5,792 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $294,000 after purchasing an additional 1,180 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its position in Webster Financial by 11.3% in the 1st quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 10,559 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $536,000 after buying an additional 1,069 shares during the period. Atria Investments Inc acquired a new position in shares of Webster Financial in the first quarter worth $1,049,000. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in shares of Webster Financial by 402.4% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 32,066 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,628,000 after acquiring an additional 25,683 shares during the period. Finally, Cetera Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 24.4% in the first quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 7,307 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $371,000 after acquiring an additional 1,435 shares in the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Webster Financial Stock Performance

NYSE WBS traded down $0.27 on Friday, reaching $61.78. The stock had a trading volume of 489,466 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,324,911. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86. The stock has a market cap of $10.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.27. The business's 50-day moving average price is $52.93 and its 200 day moving average price is $47.59. Webster Financial Co. has a 12-month low of $39.33 and a 12-month high of $63.99.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.35 by ($0.01). Webster Financial had a net margin of 18.80% and a return on equity of 11.03%. The business had revenue of $647.62 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $677.72 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.55 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.59%. Webster Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.28%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WBS has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Webster Financial from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Wedbush increased their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $52.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $57.00 to $54.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Webster Financial from $58.00 to $55.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $57.85.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Webster Financial news, Director Mark Pettie sold 4,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.14, for a total transaction of $230,130.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 32,780 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,676,369.20. This represents a 12.07 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.33, for a total transaction of $474,640.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 218,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,988,760.92. The trade was a 3.53 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 36,750 shares of company stock valued at $2,074,367 over the last quarter. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.