GSA Capital Partners LLP Makes New Investment in Webster Financial Corporation $WBS

GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new position in Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 6,823 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $521,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Webster Financial in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $142,035,000. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 7,442.8% in the third quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 2,032,937 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $120,838,000 after acquiring an additional 2,005,985 shares during the period. Whitebox Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Webster Financial in the first quarter valued at $133,634,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new position in shares of Webster Financial in the first quarter valued at $109,754,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in Webster Financial by 67.6% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 3,727,744 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $258,780,000 after purchasing an additional 1,504,075 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Webster Financial Price Performance

WBS opened at $77.57 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $76.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $73.24. Webster Financial Corporation has a 12-month low of $52.69 and a 12-month high of $79.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.61 and a beta of 1.01.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $769.23 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $755.80 million. Webster Financial had a net margin of 22.78% and a return on equity of 11.23%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.52 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Webster Financial Corporation will post 6.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 10th were paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 10th. Webster Financial’s payout ratio is 26.02%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on WBS. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on Webster Financial from $79.00 to $77.50 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 1st. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Webster Financial from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $74.25.

About Webster Financial

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.