Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) Stock Holdings Increased by Stifel Financial Corp

Stifel Financial Corp increased its holdings in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 12.0% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 158,454 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 17,020 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp’s holdings in Webster Financial were worth $7,386,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 28.0% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,522,044 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $240,687,000 after acquiring an additional 1,206,575 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 64.9% during the second quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,604,198 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $69,927,000 after acquiring an additional 631,080 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can raised its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 182.7% during the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 959,180 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $44,496,000 after acquiring an additional 619,934 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Webster Financial during the third quarter valued at approximately $22,146,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings 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 during the period. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Webster Financial Stock Performance

WBS stock opened at $58.98 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The company has a market capitalization of $10.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.37, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.29. Webster Financial Co. has a 12 month low of $39.33 and a 12 month high of $63.99. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $55.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $48.57.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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). The firm had revenue of $647.62 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 posted $1.55 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity at Webster Financial

In other news, Director Mark Pettie sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 32,780 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,676,369.20. This represents a 12.07 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Daniel Bley sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.91, for a total transaction of $30,955.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 17,279 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,069,742.89. This represents a 2.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 37,250 shares of company stock worth $2,105,322 in the last ninety days. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wedbush boosted their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $52.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Stephens set a $58.00 price objective on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. StockNews.com raised shares of Webster Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered 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. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Webster Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $59.08.

About Webster Financial

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.