Avalon Advisory Group Acquires 2,853 Shares of WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC)

Avalon Advisory Group lifted its holdings in shares of WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC) by 34.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,131 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,853 shares during the quarter. WesBanco makes up 0.2% of Avalon Advisory Group’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Avalon Advisory Group’s holdings in WesBanco were worth $331,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC increased its position in WesBanco by 25.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 695,487 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $20,712,000 after purchasing an additional 142,597 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund increased its position in shares of WesBanco by 2.5% during the third quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 500,890 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $14,917,000 after buying an additional 11,987 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in WesBanco by 4.5% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 490,335 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $13,685,000 after buying an additional 21,297 shares in the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC purchased a new stake in WesBanco in the third quarter worth about $12,333,000. Finally, F M Investments LLC bought a new stake in WesBanco during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $7,726,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Stephens increased their target price on WesBanco from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $35.00 price objective on shares of WesBanco in a report on Monday, September 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $36.17.

WesBanco Stock Performance

Shares of WSBC opened at $35.34 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The stock has a market cap of $2.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.91 and a beta of 0.84. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $32.21 and its 200-day moving average price is $30.44. WesBanco, Inc. has a 52 week low of $25.56 and a 52 week high of $37.36.

WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.03. WesBanco had a return on equity of 5.75% and a net margin of 14.79%. The business had revenue of $243.34 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $152.40 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.59 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that WesBanco, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WesBanco Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th will be given a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.19%. This is an increase from WesBanco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. WesBanco’s dividend payout ratio is 68.90%.

Insider Buying and Selling at WesBanco

In related news, EVP Michael L. Perkins sold 1,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.87, for a total value of $39,228.75. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 46,817 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,632,508.79. This represents a 2.35 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 3.44% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About WesBanco

WesBanco, Inc operates as the bank holding company for WesBanco Bank, Inc that provides retail banking, corporate banking, personal and corporate trust, brokerage, mortgage banking, and insurance services to individuals and businesses in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Community Banking, and Trust and Investment Services.