4,078 Shares in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) Purchased by Avantax Advisory Services Inc.

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 4,078 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $225,000.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Webster Financial by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 32,155 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,776,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Webster Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,163,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its stake in Webster Financial by 26.8% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 45,904 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,535,000 after purchasing an additional 9,706 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC lifted its holdings in Webster Financial by 11.5% in the 4th quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 21,259 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,174,000 after purchasing an additional 2,192 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Inceptionr LLC acquired a new stake in Webster Financial during the 4th quarter worth $578,000. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. UBS Group began coverage on Webster Financial in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $76.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com raised Webster Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, January 11th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Webster Financial from $75.00 to $66.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Webster Financial from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $63.36.

Insider Buying and Selling at Webster Financial

In other Webster Financial news, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.43, for a total transaction of $459,440.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 210,051 shares in the company, valued at $12,063,228.93. This represents a 3.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Laurence C. Morse sold 13,217 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.07, for a total transaction of $780,728.19. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 18,808 shares of the company’s stock, 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 owned by corporate insiders.

Webster Financial Stock Performance

NYSE WBS opened at $52.32 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $56.05 and a 200-day simple moving average of $54.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock has a market cap of $8.96 billion, a PE ratio of 11.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.28. Webster Financial Co. has a twelve month low of $39.34 and a twelve month high of $63.99.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $661.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $687.53 million. Webster Financial had a net margin of 18.39% and a return on equity of 10.82%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.46 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.06%. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.61%.

Webster Financial Company 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.