Analysts Set Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) Price Target at $56.17

Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $56.17.

Several analysts have recently weighed in on WBS shares. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on Webster Financial from $65.00 to $56.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Webster Financial from $63.00 to $58.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on Webster Financial from $57.00 to $54.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on Webster Financial from $64.00 to $58.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on Webster Financial from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 24th.

Insider Transactions at Webster Financial

In other news, insider Daniel Bley sold 2,280 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.80, for a total transaction of $102,144.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 28,693 shares in the company, valued at $1,285,446.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Webster Financial

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 0.3% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 17,926,270 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $910,117,000 after purchasing an additional 54,841 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 1.6% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 6,237,482 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $316,678,000 after purchasing an additional 95,780 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 12.3% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,916,013 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $198,785,000 after purchasing an additional 430,331 shares during the period. Earnest Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 11.2% during the first quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 3,072,624 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $155,997,000 after purchasing an additional 308,455 shares during the period. Finally, Davis Asset Management L.P. lifted its holdings in Webster Financial by 14.3% in the fourth quarter. Davis Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,000,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $101,520,000 after acquiring an additional 250,000 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Webster Financial Trading Up 5.1 %

WBS stock opened at $43.59 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $7.48 billion, a PE ratio of 8.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.31. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $43.65 and a 200 day moving average price of $47.08. Webster Financial has a fifty-two week low of $36.36 and a fifty-two week high of $53.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.37 by ($0.02). Webster Financial had a return on equity of 12.55% and a net margin of 21.09%. The business had revenue of $667.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $680.72 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.49 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Webster Financial will post 5.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 6th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.67%. Webster Financial’s payout ratio is 32.79%.

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.