Vanguard Group Inc. Has $1.02 Billion Stock Holdings in Webster Financial Corporation $WBS

Vanguard Group Inc. decreased its stake in Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS) by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 17,146,498 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 348,966 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 0.10% of Webster Financial worth $1,019,188,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Webster Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in Webster Financial during the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its holdings in Webster Financial by 56.1% in the 2nd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 829 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 298 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC bought a new position in Webster Financial in the third quarter valued at about $47,000. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its position in Webster Financial by 50.3% in the second quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 899 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 301 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on WBS. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $70.00 price target on shares of Webster Financial in a report on Friday, February 6th. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $73.00 target price on shares of Webster Financial in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Barclays set a $75.00 price target on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. UBS Group cut shares of Webster Financial from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $77.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Webster Financial from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Webster Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $74.36.

Webster Financial Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of NYSE WBS opened at $73.08 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $66.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $61.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86. Webster Financial Corporation has a 52-week low of $39.43 and a 52-week high of $73.87. The company has a market capitalization of $11.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.36 and a beta of 1.07.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.52 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $760.48 million during 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 quarter last year, the firm earned $1.43 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Webster Financial Corporation will post 5.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 9th were given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.07%.

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.