Corient Private Wealth LLC Reduces Position in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Corient Private Wealth LLC lowered its holdings in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 11.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 26,834 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,337 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC’s holdings in Webster Financial were worth $1,482,000 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. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ purchased a new position in shares of Webster Financial during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in Webster Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $43,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in Webster Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at $53,000. UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in Webster Financial by 88.1% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,119 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $62,000 after acquiring an additional 524 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of Webster Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $105,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group started coverage on Webster Financial in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $76.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Webster Financial from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Webster Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $70.00 to $75.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Barclays raised their price objective on Webster Financial from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $75.00 to $66.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $63.08.

Insider Activity at Webster Financial

In other news, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.43, for a total value of $459,440.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 210,051 shares in the company, valued at $12,063,228.93. This trade represents a 3.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Laurence C. Morse sold 13,217 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.07, for a total value of $780,728.19. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 18,808 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,110,988.56. The trade was a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Webster Financial Price Performance

NYSE WBS opened at $52.67 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $56.17 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $54.43. Webster Financial Co. has a 52 week low of $39.34 and a 52 week high of $63.99. The stock has a market cap of $9.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $661.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $687.53 million. Webster Financial had a return on equity of 10.82% and a net margin of 18.39%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.46 EPS. Analysts forecast that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.88 EPS for the current year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.04%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. Webster Financial’s payout ratio is currently 36.61%.

About Webster Financial

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.