Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Analyst Says

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) had its price target hoisted by equities research analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $77.00 to $79.00 in a report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “outperform” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods’ price objective indicates a potential upside of 10.68% from the company’s previous close.

WBS has been the subject of a number of other research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. Citigroup cut Webster Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $75.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Friday, February 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada downgraded shares of Webster Financial from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $75.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Webster Financial in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Webster Financial from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $74.50.

Webster Financial Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of NYSE WBS traded down $0.75 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $71.38. The stock had a trading volume of 1,085,511 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,015,466. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $67.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $62.32. The firm has a market cap of $11.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.08 and a beta of 1.03. Webster Financial has a fifty-two week low of $39.43 and a fifty-two week high of $74.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.52 by $0.07. Webster Financial had a return on equity of 11.10% and a net margin of 22.67%.The firm had revenue of $760.48 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $731.95 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.43 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Webster Financial will post 5.88 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Webster Financial

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of WBS. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Webster Financial by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,920,300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $498,509,000 after purchasing an additional 107,335 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,516,110 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $347,184,000 after acquiring an additional 156,636 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in Webster Financial by 15.7% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,246,364 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $330,207,000 after acquiring an additional 713,294 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its holdings in Webster Financial by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 4,177,281 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $263,058,000 after purchasing an additional 16,676 shares during the period. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 14.5% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,453,778 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $188,576,000 after purchasing an additional 438,131 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Webster Financial Company 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.