Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) Now Covered by Analysts at TD Cowen

TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) in a research report report published on Thursday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm issued a buy rating and a $78.00 price objective on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on WBS. Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of Webster Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Raymond James Financial boosted their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Wednesday, September 10th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $70.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $69.00 price objective on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $67.73.

Webster Financial Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of NYSE:WBS opened at $59.76 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $59.84 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $54.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.85. Webster Financial has a one year low of $39.43 and a one year high of $63.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.93 billion, a PE ratio of 12.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 1.07.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.52 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.09. Webster Financial had a net margin of 20.06% and a return on equity of 10.84%. The firm had revenue of $715.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $716.59 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.26 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Webster Financial will post 5.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 11th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 11th. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.45%.

Insider Activity at Webster Financial

In other news, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.95, for a total transaction of $463,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 239,872 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,900,582.40. This trade represents a 3.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider James Mi Griffin sold 807 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.14, for a total transaction of $50,146.98. Following the sale, the insider owned 12,556 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $780,229.84. This represents a 6.04% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 36,445 shares of company stock worth $2,168,537 in the last quarter. 0.54% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Webster Financial

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Webster Financial in the 2nd quarter worth about $131,780,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Webster Financial by 221.0% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,565,623 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $85,483,000 after purchasing an additional 1,077,819 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Webster Financial by 7.4% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,108,082 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $366,408,000 after purchasing an additional 487,264 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Webster Financial in the 1st quarter worth about $23,603,000. Finally, Azora Capital LP raised its stake in Webster Financial by 30.5% in the 2nd quarter. Azora Capital LP now owns 1,886,385 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $102,997,000 after purchasing an additional 440,347 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

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.