Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) Stock Position Decreased by Edgestream Partners L.P.

Edgestream Partners L.P. reduced its position in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 85.3% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 15,434 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 89,688 shares during the quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P.’s holdings in Webster Financial were worth $719,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 1,206,575 shares during the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC increased its holdings 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 valued at $134,524,000 after acquiring an additional 13,487 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 12.9% in the 2nd 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. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in Webster Financial by 11.4% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,874,644 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $87,377,000 after purchasing an additional 191,894 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in Webster Financial by 8.1% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 1,833,761 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $79,934,000 after purchasing an additional 137,242 shares during the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Daniel Bley sold 3,463 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.10, for a total value of $180,422.30. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 19,529 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,017,460.90. This trade represents a 15.06 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Mark Pettie sold 4,500 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the director now owns 32,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,676,369.20. This represents a 12.07 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 37,250 shares of company stock valued at $2,105,322 over the last three months. 0.88% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on WBS shares. Stephens set a $58.00 price objective on shares of Webster Financial in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Webster Financial from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. StockNews.com lowered Webster Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Barclays increased 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Webster Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $59.08.

Webster Financial Stock Performance

NYSE:WBS opened at $59.90 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.89 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. Webster Financial Co. has a 1 year low of $39.33 and a 1 year high of $63.99. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $54.05 and a 200-day moving average of $47.98.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.34 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $677.72 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.55 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.67%. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.