Bank of New York Mellon Corp Reduces Holdings in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Bank of New York Mellon Corp decreased its position in shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 8.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,892,737 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 182,720 shares during the quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned approximately 1.10% of Webster Financial worth $104,517,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in WBS. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 759.8% during the fourth quarter. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC now owns 823,280 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $45,462,000 after purchasing an additional 727,530 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew 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 worth $44,496,000 after purchasing an additional 619,934 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 4.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,320,930 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $341,229,000 after buying an additional 333,606 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in Webster Financial by 57.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 770,684 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,922,000 after acquiring an additional 281,686 shares during the period. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP acquired a new position in Webster Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $8,059,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Webster Financial

In related news, Director Laurence C. Morse sold 13,217 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.07, for a total value of $780,728.19. Following the sale, the director now owns 18,808 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,110,988.56. This represents a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.43, for a total value of $459,440.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 210,051 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,063,228.93. The trade was a 3.67 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Webster Financial Stock Performance

NYSE WBS opened at $56.19 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $57.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $53.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.86, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. Webster Financial Co. has a 12-month low of $39.33 and a 12-month high of $63.99.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $661.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $687.53 million. Webster Financial had a return on equity of 10.82% and a net margin of 18.39%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.46 EPS. Research analysts expect that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.88 EPS for the current year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.85%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.61%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on WBS shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Webster Financial from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Webster Financial from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Webster Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $70.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group started coverage on Webster Financial in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $76.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Webster Financial from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $62.08.

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.