Brokerages Set Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) Price Target at $57.85

Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve analysts that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and nine have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $57.85.

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com raised Webster Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Stephens set a $58.00 target price on Webster Financial in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Barclays raised their target price on Webster Financial from $60.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Webster Financial from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Webster Financial from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mark Pettie sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was 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 directly owns 32,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,676,369.20. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Director Mark Pettie sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was 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 directly owns 32,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,676,369.20. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Albert Jen-Wen Wang sold 4,000 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.43, for a total value of $209,720.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 14,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $748,333.39. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 11,963 shares of company stock valued at $620,272 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WBS. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Webster Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 340.7% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 595 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 460 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Webster Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Mather Group LLC. raised its stake in Webster Financial by 7,650.0% during the 2nd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 1,240 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 1,224 shares during the period. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. raised its stake in Webster Financial by 117.9% during the 3rd quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 1,268 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 686 shares during the period. 85.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Webster Financial Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:WBS opened at $50.24 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $8.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.39, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.26. Webster Financial has a 1 year low of $38.54 and a 1 year high of $54.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $47.53 and its 200 day simple moving average is $45.64.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $647.62 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $677.72 million. Webster Financial had a return on equity of 11.03% and a net margin of 18.80%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.55 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Webster Financial will post 5.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.28%.

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.