UBS Group AG Boosts Holdings in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

UBS Group AG grew its holdings in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS – Get Rating) by 31.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 145,517 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 35,156 shares during the quarter. UBS Group AG owned 0.08% of Webster Financial worth $6,889,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in WBS. US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in Webster Financial by 217.7% in the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 6,646 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $372,000 after acquiring an additional 4,554 shares in the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Webster Financial during the first quarter worth approximately $480,000. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC acquired a new stake in Webster Financial during the first quarter worth approximately $410,000. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its holdings in Webster Financial by 78.6% during the first quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 11,359 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $637,000 after purchasing an additional 4,999 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in Webster Financial by 78.5% during the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 18,398 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,032,000 after purchasing an additional 8,091 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.86% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on WBS shares. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $55.00 price objective on shares of Webster Financial in a report on Friday, April 21st. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $70.00 to $50.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $54.00 to $40.00 in a report on Thursday, April 6th. Wedbush lifted their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 27th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $75.00 to $63.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Webster Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $54.42.

Webster Financial Stock Performance

NYSE:WBS opened at $36.42 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $6.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.39 and a beta of 1.25. Webster Financial Co. has a 1-year low of $31.03 and a 1-year high of $56.46. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $36.86 and its 200 day moving average price is $45.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.95.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 20th. The financial services provider reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.56 by ($0.07). Webster Financial had a return on equity of 13.39% and a net margin of 28.33%. The company had revenue of $666.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $708.96 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.24 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 33.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Webster Financial Co. will post 6.03 EPS for the current year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 8th were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 5th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.39%. Webster Financial’s payout ratio is 32.45%.

Webster Financial Profile

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Webster Financial Corp. is a holding company, which engages in the provision of financial services to individuals, families, and businesses. It operates through the following business segments: Commercial Banking, HSA Bank, and Retail Banking. The Commercial Banking segment includes commercial banking and private banking.