Webster Financial Corporation $WBS Shares Purchased by Clearbridge Investments LLC

Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its stake in Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS) by 17,591.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 886,344 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 881,334 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned approximately 0.55% of Webster Financial worth $55,786,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Pinnbrook Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Webster Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at $2,254,000. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd lifted its position in shares of Webster Financial by 115.3% during the 3rd quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 32,940 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,958,000 after acquiring an additional 17,640 shares during the last quarter. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. lifted its position in shares of Webster Financial by 186.3% during the 3rd quarter. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. now owns 53,817 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,199,000 after acquiring an additional 35,017 shares during the last quarter. Holocene Advisors LP acquired a new stake in shares of Webster Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at $44,254,000. Finally, Artemis Investment Management LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Webster Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $56,253,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Webster Financial Trading Up 0.1%

NYSE WBS opened at $72.34 on Tuesday. Webster Financial Corporation has a 1-year low of $50.66 and a 1-year high of $74.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The company has a market capitalization of $11.72 billion, a PE ratio of 11.84 and a beta of 1.01. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $71.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $68.21.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.04. Webster Financial had a net margin of 22.95% and a return on equity of 11.31%. The business had revenue of $764.05 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $735.26 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.30 earnings per share. Webster Financial’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Webster Financial Corporation will post 6.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 26.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Citigroup downgraded Webster Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $75.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Santander downgraded Webster Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on Webster Financial from $79.00 to $77.50 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Webster Financial from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on Webster Financial in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $69.00 target price for the company. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Webster Financial currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $73.96.

Webster Financial Company Profile

Webster Financial Corporation is a bank holding company headquartered in Waterbury, Connecticut. Through its principal subsidiary, Webster Bank, N.A., the company offers a broad range of banking products and financial services to individuals, small businesses, and middle-market commercial clients. Key offerings include deposit accounts, residential and commercial real estate lending, equipment finance, treasury management, and payment processing solutions.

In addition to traditional banking services, Webster Financial provides wealth management and insurance products designed to help clients plan for retirement, preserve assets, and manage risk.