KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Increases Stock Holdings in Webster Financial Corporation $WBS

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS grew its holdings in shares of Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS) by 2.6% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 35,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 900 shares during the period. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS’s holdings in Webster Financial were worth $1,949,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Hunter Perkins Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Webster Financial by 15.9% during the 2nd quarter. Hunter Perkins Capital Management LLC now owns 118,256 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,457,000 after buying an additional 16,211 shares during the period. Hilltop National Bank acquired a new position in shares of Webster Financial in the second quarter worth $80,000. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH grew its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 4.0% in the second quarter. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH now owns 401,504 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $21,922,000 after acquiring an additional 15,420 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC increased its position in shares of Webster Financial by 4.5% during the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 7,388 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $403,000 after acquiring an additional 319 shares during the period. Finally, Perigon Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 4.5% in the second quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,348 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $237,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider James Mi Griffin sold 807 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.14, for a total value of $50,146.98. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 12,556 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $780,229.84. This represents a 6.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Albert Jen-Wen Wang sold 3,250 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.31, for a total transaction of $196,007.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 15,755 shares in the company, valued at $950,184.05. The trade was a 17.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 36,445 shares of company stock valued at $2,168,537 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WBS has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $78.00 target price on shares of Webster Financial in a research note on Wednesday. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Webster Financial from $65.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on shares of Webster Financial in a research note on Wednesday, September 10th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $70.00 target price on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $67.00 price target (up previously from $61.00) on shares of Webster Financial in a report on Friday, July 11th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $68.73.

Webster Financial Trading Down 6.0%

NYSE WBS opened at $55.64 on Monday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $59.77 and its 200 day moving average price is $54.79. Webster Financial Corporation has a 12 month low of $39.43 and a 12 month high of $63.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The company has a market capitalization of $9.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 1.05.

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

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 11th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. Webster Financial’s payout ratio is 32.45%.

About Webster Financial

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.