Perigon Wealth Management LLC Takes Position in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Perigon Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 4,194 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $213,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 17,679,692 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $799,122,000 after acquiring an additional 116,092 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. boosted its holdings in Webster Financial by 2.1% in the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 17,498,723 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $689,800,000 after purchasing an additional 362,728 shares during the period. Capital International Investors increased its stake in Webster Financial by 18.2% during the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 9,297,676 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $521,886,000 after purchasing an additional 1,433,204 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 9.8% during the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,904,283 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $311,587,000 after purchasing an additional 707,001 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of Webster Financial by 22.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,258,411 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $292,587,000 after buying an additional 1,339,862 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Webster Financial

In other news, insider Charles L. Wilkins sold 3,966 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.56, for a total value of $204,486.96. Following the sale, the insider now owns 49,528 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,553,663.68. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, insider Charles L. Wilkins sold 3,966 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.56, for a total transaction of $204,486.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 49,528 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,553,663.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Daniel Bley sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.60, for a total transaction of $95,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 27,955 shares in the company, valued at $1,330,658. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 29,941 shares of company stock valued at $1,545,582. 0.88% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WBS has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $60.00 price objective for the company. Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. StockNews.com downgraded Webster Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on Webster Financial from $59.00 to $57.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Webster Financial from $51.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $57.85.

Webster Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WBS opened at $45.40 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $7.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.28, a P/E/G ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 1.33. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $48.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $46.25. Webster Financial Co. has a fifty-two week low of $31.03 and a fifty-two week high of $53.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.46 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $996.96 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $674.82 million. Webster Financial had a return on equity of 13.05% and a net margin of 22.01%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.60 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.86 EPS for the current year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 5th were given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 2nd. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.52%. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.72%.

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.