Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) Lowered to Sell Rating by StockNews.com

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report issued on Friday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Stephens set a $58.00 target price on Webster Financial in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Webster Financial from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $58.00 to $55.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $57.00 to $54.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Wedbush raised their price target 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Webster Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $60.31.

Webster Financial Price Performance

Shares of Webster Financial stock traded up $0.67 during trading on Friday, hitting $55.48. 842,513 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 760,256. The stock has a market cap of $9.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.58, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. Webster Financial has a 52 week low of $39.33 and a 52 week high of $63.99. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $57.58 and its 200-day moving average is $50.01.

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

Insider Transactions at Webster Financial

In other news, CAO Albert Jen-Wen Wang sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.43, for a total value of $209,720.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 14,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $748,333.39. The trade was a 21.89 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Mark Pettie sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.14, for a total value of $230,130.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 32,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,676,369.20. This trade represents a 12.07 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 37,250 shares of company stock valued at $2,105,322. Corporate insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Webster Financial

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp boosted its stake 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 worth $341,229,000 after purchasing an additional 333,606 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Webster Financial by 28.0% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,522,044 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $240,687,000 after buying an additional 1,206,575 shares during the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 0.4% in the second 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. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 1.9% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,969,928 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $138,465,000 after buying an additional 54,613 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in shares of Webster Financial by 12.9% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,640,425 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $115,096,000 after acquiring an additional 301,935 shares in the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.