Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. Raises Holdings in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. grew its position in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,777,413 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 93,929 shares during the quarter. Webster Financial comprises about 4.3% of Basswood Capital Management L.L.C.’s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest position. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C.’s holdings in Webster Financial were worth $82,845,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Maverick Capital Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 4.5% in the third quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 28,283 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,318,000 after buying an additional 1,223 shares during the period. Fourthstone LLC increased its stake in Webster Financial by 569.2% in the third quarter. Fourthstone LLC now owns 82,100 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,827,000 after purchasing an additional 69,832 shares during the period. PEAK6 Investments LLC increased its stake in Webster Financial by 180.4% in the third quarter. PEAK6 Investments LLC now owns 9,031 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $421,000 after purchasing an additional 20,263 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in shares of Webster Financial by 8.5% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 89,202 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,158,000 after purchasing an additional 6,964 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of Webster Financial during the third quarter valued at $53,000. Institutional investors own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Webster Financial Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE WBS opened at $61.78 on Monday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $52.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $47.60. Webster Financial Co. has a 1-year low of $39.33 and a 1-year high of $63.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.27.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $647.62 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $677.72 million. Webster Financial had a net margin of 18.80% and a return on equity of 11.03%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.55 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st were issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.59%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.28%.

Insider Transactions at Webster Financial

In other news, CAO Albert Jen-Wen Wang sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.43, for a total transaction of $209,720.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 14,273 shares in the company, valued at $748,333.39. This represents a 21.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Mark Pettie sold 4,500 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.14, for a total transaction of $230,130.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 32,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,676,369.20. This trade represents a 12.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 36,750 shares of company stock valued at $2,074,367. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $57.00 to $54.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 30th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Webster Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Webster Financial from $58.00 to $55.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Webster Financial from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Stephens set a $58.00 price target on Webster Financial in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $57.85.

Webster Financial Profile

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.