Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) Insider Sells $297,500.00 in Stock

Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) insider Charles L. Wilkins sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.50, for a total transaction of $297,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 33,657 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,002,591.50. The trade was a 12.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Webster Financial Stock Down 0.7 %

NYSE:WBS traded down $0.44 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $59.52. The stock had a trading volume of 911,593 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,260,588. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $50.41 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $46.73. The company has a market capitalization of $10.20 billion, a PE ratio of 13.43, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.27. Webster Financial Co. has a twelve month low of $39.33 and a twelve month high of $61.12. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.35 by ($0.01). Webster Financial had a return on equity of 11.03% and a net margin of 18.80%. The company had revenue of $647.62 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $677.72 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.55 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.24 EPS for the current year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.69%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. Webster Financial’s payout ratio is 36.28%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Webster Financial

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WBS. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Webster Financial by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 17,926,270 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $910,117,000 after acquiring an additional 54,841 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in Webster Financial by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,320,930 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $341,229,000 after purchasing an additional 333,606 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in Webster Financial by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 6,237,482 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $316,678,000 after purchasing an additional 95,780 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Webster Financial by 28.0% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,522,044 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $240,687,000 after purchasing an additional 1,206,575 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Earnest Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Webster Financial by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 3,086,111 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $134,524,000 after buying an additional 13,487 shares in the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $57.00 to $54.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Stephens set a $58.00 target price on shares of Webster Financial in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $58.00 to $55.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Webster Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. One investment 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 data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $57.85.

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.