Rhumbline Advisers Grows Stock Holdings in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Rhumbline Advisers increased its stake in shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 0.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 497,313 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,002 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers’ holdings in Webster Financial were worth $27,462,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in WBS. 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 purchasing an additional 619,934 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new position in shares of Webster Financial during the third quarter valued at approximately $22,146,000. State Street Corp raised 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 valued at $341,229,000 after purchasing an additional 333,606 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Webster Financial by 57.6% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 770,684 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,922,000 after buying an additional 281,686 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP purchased a new stake in Webster Financial during the third quarter valued at approximately $8,059,000. 85.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Webster Financial

In other news, insider Daniel Bley sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.91, for a total value of $30,955.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 17,279 shares in the company, valued at $1,069,742.89. The trade was a 2.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Webster Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WBS opened at $58.73 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.84. The company has a market cap of $10.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.29. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $57.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $53.12. Webster Financial Co. has a 52-week low of $39.33 and a 52-week 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 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $661.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $687.53 million. Webster Financial had a net margin of 18.39% and a return on equity of 10.82%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.46 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.72%. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WBS has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. StockNews.com raised shares of Webster Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, January 11th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Webster Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $70.00 to $75.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $62.08.

Webster Financial 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.