Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) Insider Daniel Bley Sells 2,280 Shares

Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) insider Daniel Bley sold 2,280 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.80, for a total value of $102,144.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 28,693 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,285,446.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Daniel Bley also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Thursday, February 29th, Daniel Bley sold 2,000 shares of Webster Financial stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.60, for a total value of $95,200.00.

Webster Financial Stock Performance

Shares of WBS traded up $0.42 on Thursday, reaching $44.80. 4,468,024 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,221,590. The firm has a market cap of $7.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.17, a P/E/G ratio of 0.39 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86. Webster Financial Co. has a 12 month low of $31.03 and a 12 month high of $53.39. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $47.67 and its 200-day moving average price is $46.67.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $667.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $680.72 million. Webster Financial had a net margin of 21.09% and a return on equity of 12.55%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.49 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 6th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 3rd. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.79%.

Institutional Trading of Webster Financial

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of WBS. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its position in shares of Webster Financial by 4.2% during the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 86,977 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,506,000 after purchasing an additional 3,505 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its position in Webster Financial by 12.1% in the third quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 7,325 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $295,000 after acquiring an additional 792 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. grew its position in Webster Financial by 31.0% in the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 24,979 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,007,000 after acquiring an additional 5,915 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in Webster Financial by 1.8% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,732,942 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $110,165,000 after acquiring an additional 48,445 shares during the period. Finally, Advisor Partners II LLC grew its position in Webster Financial by 18.5% in the third quarter. Advisor Partners II LLC now owns 7,682 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $310,000 after acquiring an additional 1,197 shares during the period. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup reduced their target price on Webster Financial from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Webster Financial from $65.00 to $63.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Webster Financial from $51.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on Webster Financial from $57.00 to $54.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on Webster Financial in a report on Thursday, January 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $60.00 price target for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $56.23.

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.