Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the sixteen ratings firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $73.9643.

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on Webster Financial from $79.00 to $77.50 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Webster Financial in a research note on Friday, June 12th. Finally, UBS Group began coverage on shares of Webster Financial in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $69.00 price objective for the company.

Webster Financial Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of Webster Financial stock opened at $75.91 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $12.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.42 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.87. The company has a fifty day moving average of $74.19 and a 200 day moving average of $70.93. Webster Financial has a fifty-two week low of $52.69 and a fifty-two week high of $77.69.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.04. Webster Financial had a return on equity of 11.31% and a net margin of 22.95%.The business had revenue of $764.05 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $735.26 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.30 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Webster Financial will post 6.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 21st. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.19%.

Institutional Trading of Webster Financial

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. increased its position in Webster Financial by 186.3% during the third 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. Artemis Investment Management LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Webster Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $56,253,000. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 95.4% in the 1st quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC now owns 33,038 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,294,000 after acquiring an additional 16,132 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 18.2% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 519,265 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,865,000 after acquiring an additional 80,038 shares during the last quarter. Finally, M&T Bank Corp boosted its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 478.7% during the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 246,601 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $15,521,000 after purchasing an additional 203,989 shares during the period. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Webster Financial

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.