SG Americas Securities LLC Buys Shares of 41,495 Webster Financial Corporation $WBS

SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 41,495 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,612,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in Webster Financial by 2.2% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 94,385 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,866,000 after acquiring an additional 2,049 shares during the period. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Webster Financial during the 1st quarter valued at about $114,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 15.2% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 40,127 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,069,000 after purchasing an additional 5,299 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Webster Financial by 37.0% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 652,921 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,658,000 after purchasing an additional 176,258 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its position in shares of Webster Financial by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 476,095 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $24,543,000 after purchasing an additional 20,090 shares during the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on WBS shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. TD Cowen cut shares of Webster Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Raymond James Financial downgraded shares of Webster Financial from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Webster Financial from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $74.50.

Webster Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WBS opened at $69.79 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $11.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.81 and a beta of 1.03. Webster Financial Corporation has a 1-year low of $39.43 and a 1-year high of $74.00. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $69.79 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $63.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.59 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.07. Webster Financial had a net margin of 22.67% and a return on equity of 11.10%. The firm had revenue of $760.48 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $731.95 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.43 EPS. Research analysts expect that Webster Financial Corporation will post 5.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 9th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.07%.

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.