Whittier Trust Co. Grows Stake in Webster Financial Corporation $WBS

Whittier Trust Co. raised its position in shares of Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS) by 37.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 208,492 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 56,341 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. owned about 0.13% of Webster Financial worth $12,428,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in Webster Financial during the 3rd quarter worth about $578,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH raised its position in shares of Webster Financial by 15.6% in the 3rd quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 42,012 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,497,000 after acquiring an additional 5,671 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Webster Financial during the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Arkadios Wealth Advisors lifted its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 12,410 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $738,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Verdence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in Webster Financial by 4.1% during the third quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 10,328 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $590,000 after purchasing an additional 411 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WBS has been the subject of several analyst reports. TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $78.00 to $77.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Webster Financial from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $72.00 price target on shares of Webster Financial in a report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $72.00 price objective on shares of Webster Financial in a report on Monday, January 12th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $72.92.

Webster Financial Trading Down 3.2%

Shares of WBS stock opened at $64.13 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $10.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.85, a PEG ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.05. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $62.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $60.17. 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 Corporation has a 1-year low of $39.43 and a 1-year high of $67.43.

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

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 10th were given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 10th. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.07%.

Insider Activity at Webster Financial

In related news, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 231,872 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,857,302.40. The trade was a 3.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

About Webster Financial

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.