Hantz Financial Services Inc. Raises Stake in Webster Financial Corporation $WBS

Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS) by 814.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,753 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 11,358 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Webster Financial were worth $803,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 94,385 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,866,000 after buying an additional 2,049 shares during the last quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Webster Financial during the 1st quarter valued at about $114,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 15.2% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 40,127 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,069,000 after buying an additional 5,299 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 37.0% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 652,921 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,658,000 after buying an additional 176,258 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 476,095 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $24,543,000 after buying an additional 20,090 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WBS has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group began coverage on Webster Financial in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $69.00 price objective for the company. TD Cowen lowered Webster Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Raymond James Financial lowered Webster Financial from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Citigroup lowered Webster Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $75.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $75.00 price objective on Webster Financial in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Webster Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $73.96.

Webster Financial Trading Down 0.4%

Webster Financial stock opened at $72.67 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. Webster Financial Corporation has a 12 month low of $50.24 and a 12 month high of $74.00. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $71.29 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $67.42. The firm has a market cap of $11.77 billion, a PE ratio of 11.89 and a beta of 1.02.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.53 by $0.04. Webster Financial had a return on equity of 11.31% and a net margin of 22.95%.The business had revenue of $764.05 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $735.26 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.30 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Webster Financial Corporation will post 6.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.19%.

Webster Financial Profile

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.