Webster Financial Corporation $WBS Shares Acquired by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS) by 959.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 358,294 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 324,471 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned about 0.22% of Webster Financial worth $21,297,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Webster Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $131,780,000. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Webster Financial by 221.0% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,565,623 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $85,483,000 after buying an additional 1,077,819 shares in the last quarter. Azora Capital LP raised its holdings in Webster Financial by 30.5% in the second quarter. Azora Capital LP now owns 1,886,385 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $102,997,000 after acquiring an additional 440,347 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in Webster Financial by 14.5% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,453,778 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $188,576,000 after acquiring an additional 438,131 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in Webster Financial by 4.9% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,296,071 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $289,165,000 after acquiring an additional 246,774 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 related news, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.45, for a total transaction of $443,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 231,872 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,857,302.40. This trade represents a 3.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Webster Financial Stock Performance

Shares of WBS stock opened at $64.58 on Friday. Webster Financial Corporation has a 12-month low of $39.43 and a 12-month high of $65.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 1.07. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $58.75 and a 200 day simple moving average of $58.35.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last announced its earnings results on Friday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.52 by $0.02. Webster Financial had a net margin of 21.32% and a return on equity of 11.07%. The firm had revenue of $756.06 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $725.22 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.34 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Webster Financial Corporation will post 5.88 EPS for the current year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 10th were paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 10th. Webster Financial’s payout ratio is currently 29.80%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on WBS shares. Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $65.00 price objective (down from $68.00) on shares of Webster Financial in a report on Monday, October 20th. TD Cowen started coverage on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $78.00 price target on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Webster Financial from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on Webster Financial in a report on Wednesday, September 10th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $70.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Webster Financial in a report on Monday. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Webster Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $70.92.

Webster Financial Company Profile

Webster Financial Corporation is a bank holding company headquartered in Waterbury, Connecticut. Through its principal subsidiary, Webster Bank, N.A., the company offers a broad range of banking products and financial services to individuals, small businesses, and middle-market commercial clients. Key offerings include deposit accounts, residential and commercial real estate lending, equipment finance, treasury management, and payment processing solutions.

In addition to traditional banking services, Webster Financial provides wealth management and insurance products designed to help clients plan for retirement, preserve assets, and manage risk.