Signaturefd LLC Raises Position in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 16.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,982 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 842 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC’s holdings in Webster Financial were worth $304,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 1.3% in the third quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 19,924 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $785,000 after acquiring an additional 263 shares in the last quarter. Mariner LLC grew its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 2.4% in the third quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 13,812 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $557,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 2.5% in the third quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 13,537 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $546,000 after acquiring an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 0.5% in the third quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 76,239 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,073,000 after acquiring an additional 390 shares in the last quarter. Finally, John G Ullman & Associates Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. now owns 31,850 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,617,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Webster Financial

In other Webster Financial news, COO Luis Massiani sold 13,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.63, for a total transaction of $697,005.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 89,621 shares in the company, valued at $4,627,132.23. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Webster Financial news, COO Luis Massiani sold 13,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.63, for a total transaction of $697,005.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 89,621 shares in the company, valued at $4,627,132.23. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Daniel Bley sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.60, for a total value of $95,200.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 27,955 shares in the company, valued at $1,330,658. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 25,975 shares of company stock worth $1,341,095 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on WBS shares. Bank of America started coverage on Webster Financial in a report on Thursday, January 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $60.00 target price for the company. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Webster Financial in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Webster Financial from $64.00 to $58.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on Webster Financial from $57.00 to $54.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Finally, StockNews.com raised Webster Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Webster Financial currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $56.23.

Webster Financial Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of WBS stock opened at $45.02 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.86. Webster Financial Co. has a 52-week low of $31.03 and a 52-week high of $53.39. The company has a market capitalization of $7.73 billion, a PE ratio of 9.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.38 and a beta of 1.33. The business’s fifty day moving average is $47.88 and its 200 day moving average is $46.48.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by ($0.02). Webster Financial had a return on equity of 12.55% and a net margin of 21.09%. The business had revenue of $667.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $680.72 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.49 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 6th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.55%. Webster Financial’s payout ratio is 32.79%.

Webster Financial 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.