Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Boosts Holdings in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio increased its holdings in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 2.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 68,552 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,784 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio’s holdings in Webster Financial were worth $3,195,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in WBS. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new stake in Webster Financial during the third quarter valued at about $690,000. EP Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Webster Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $243,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in Webster Financial by 57.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 770,684 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,922,000 after acquiring an additional 281,686 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its position in Webster Financial by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,320,930 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $341,229,000 after acquiring an additional 333,606 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp increased its stake in Webster Financial by 12.0% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 158,454 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,386,000 after purchasing an additional 17,020 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Webster Financial Price Performance

WBS opened at $59.03 on Tuesday. Webster Financial Co. has a 12-month low of $39.33 and a 12-month high of $63.99. The company has a market cap of $10.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $56.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $48.76.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) 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 business had revenue of $647.62 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $677.72 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.55 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.71%. Webster Financial’s payout ratio is currently 36.28%.

Insider Activity at Webster Financial

In other news, insider Javier L. Evans sold 10,137 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.41, for a total transaction of $581,965.17. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 22,657 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,300,738.37. This represents a 30.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Daniel Bley sold 3,463 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.10, for a total transaction of $180,422.30. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 19,529 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,017,460.90. This represents a 15.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 37,250 shares of company stock valued at $2,105,322 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on WBS shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Webster Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $58.00 to $55.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Wedbush increased their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $52.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Webster Financial from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Webster Financial from $57.00 to $54.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Webster Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $59.00.

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.