Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) Shares Sold by Cerity Partners LLC

Cerity Partners LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 8.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 8,858 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 766 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in Webster Financial were worth $489,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Webster Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $120,497,000. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Webster Financial by 759.8% during the 4th quarter. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC now owns 823,280 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $45,462,000 after purchasing an additional 727,530 shares in the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of Webster Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $27,163,000. ExodusPoint Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Webster Financial in the 4th quarter worth $25,464,000. Finally, Boston Partners boosted its stake in Webster Financial by 1,491.7% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 485,776 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,838,000 after buying an additional 455,257 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on WBS. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $75.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. StockNews.com upgraded Webster Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 11th. Raymond James decreased their target price on Webster Financial from $65.00 to $58.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Webster Financial from $75.00 to $66.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $61.92.

Webster Financial Price Performance

NYSE WBS opened at $44.55 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $50.45 and a 200-day simple moving average of $54.40. Webster Financial Co. has a 52-week low of $39.34 and a 52-week high of $63.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.84.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.08. Webster Financial had a net margin of 18.39% and a return on equity of 10.82%. The business had revenue of $661.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $687.53 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.46 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.59%. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 36.61%.

Webster Financial Company 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.