WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the six brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $40.25.

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of WesBanco from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $41.00 price target on shares of WesBanco in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Raymond James Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $41.00 price target on shares of WesBanco in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on WesBanco from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded WesBanco from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th.

WesBanco Trading Up 1.1%

NASDAQ:WSBC opened at $38.87 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $3.74 billion, a PE ratio of 12.54 and a beta of 0.67. WesBanco has a fifty-two week low of $29.18 and a fifty-two week high of $40.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $35.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $35.21.

WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.86 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $257.23 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $264.52 million. WesBanco had a net margin of 21.12% and a return on equity of 9.76%. The firm’s revenue was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.66 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that WesBanco will post 3.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WesBanco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th were given a $0.38 dividend. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 5th. WesBanco’s payout ratio is currently 49.03%.

WesBanco declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, May 20th that allows the company to buyback 4,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at WesBanco

In other WesBanco news, Director Joseph R. Robinson acquired 1,000 shares of WesBanco stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $34.54 per share, with a total value of $34,540.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 19,068 shares in the company, valued at approximately $658,608.72. This trade represents a 5.53% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jan Pattishall-Krupinski sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.71, for a total transaction of $165,195.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 35,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,318,770.04. This represents a 11.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders acquired a total of 7,000 shares of company stock worth $236,500 in the last 90 days. 2.07% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WSBC. Covestor Ltd lifted its holdings in WesBanco by 12,500.0% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 756 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 750 shares during the last quarter. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in WesBanco in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in WesBanco by 41.1% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,113 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 324 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Corp lifted its position in WesBanco by 55.4% during the 4th quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 1,302 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 464 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its holdings in WesBanco by 71.9% during the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,435 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares during the period. 61.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About WesBanco

WesBanco, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Wheeling, West Virginia, offering a full range of community banking services through its principal subsidiary, WesBanco Bank, Inc The company serves individual consumers, small‐ to mid‐sized businesses, nonprofit organizations and governmental entities with a relationship‐driven approach and an emphasis on local decision‐making. Through its diversified platform, WesBanco provides core banking functions such as deposit accounts, commercial and consumer lending, mortgage banking, treasury management and electronic banking services.

In addition to traditional banking products, WesBanco offers specialized services including trust and wealth management, investment advisory and insurance solutions.