Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) Price Target Cut to $72.00 by Analysts at Barclays

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) had its price objective reduced by Barclays from $80.00 to $72.00 in a report released on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Raymond James reduced their target price on Webster Financial from $65.00 to $58.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Morgan Stanley reduced 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. UBS Group began coverage on Webster Financial in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $76.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Webster Financial from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Webster Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $63.17.

Webster Financial Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE:WBS opened at $41.69 on Tuesday. 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 firm has a market cap of $7.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.54, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.05. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $53.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $54.50. Webster Financial has a 12-month low of $39.34 and a 12-month high of $63.99.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $661.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $687.53 million. Webster Financial had a net margin of 18.39% and a return on equity of 10.82%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.46 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Webster Financial 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.84%. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.61%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Webster Financial news, Director Laurence C. Morse sold 13,217 shares of the company’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 transaction of $780,728.19. Following the sale, the director now owns 18,808 shares in the company, valued at $1,110,988.56. This represents a 41.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was 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 owns 210,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,063,228.93. The trade was a 3.67 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.72% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Webster Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ acquired a new stake in shares of Webster Financial during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Webster Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in Webster Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $43,000. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in Webster Financial by 171.2% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,025 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 647 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Webster Financial by 78.7% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,117 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 492 shares during the period. 85.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.