Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) Upgraded to “Hold” at Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Wednesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group set a $75.00 target price on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Citigroup lowered shares of 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. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Webster Financial from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, TD Cowen lowered Webster Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $74.50.

Webster Financial Trading Down 1.6%

Shares of Webster Financial stock traded down $1.10 on Wednesday, hitting $69.00. 6,505,646 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,439,575. The company has a fifty day moving average of $67.84 and a two-hundred day moving average of $62.55. Webster Financial has a one year low of $39.43 and a one year high of $74.00. The company has a market capitalization of $11.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.68 and a beta of 1.03. 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 quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $760.48 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $731.95 million. Webster Financial had a return on equity of 11.10% and a net margin of 22.67%.During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.43 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Webster Financial will post 5.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 19th. Investors of record on Monday, February 9th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 9th. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.07%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. SHP Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of Webster Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $66,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its stake in Webster Financial by 37.8% in the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 674 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. Compound Planning Inc. grew its holdings in Webster Financial by 13.5% during the fourth quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 5,056 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $318,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in Webster Financial by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,516,110 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $347,184,000 after buying an additional 156,636 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its position in Webster Financial by 8.5% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 12,056 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $760,000 after buying an additional 947 shares during the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.