WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) Hits New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $42.21 and last traded at $41.90, with a volume of 941807 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $42.01.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on shares of WesBanco from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. DA Davidson set a $46.00 price target on WesBanco in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Weiss Ratings raised WesBanco from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Zacks Research upgraded WesBanco from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $42.00 target price on shares of WesBanco in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, WesBanco has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.20.

WesBanco Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $4.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.18 and a beta of 0.67. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $37.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $35.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.93.

WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $275.79 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $267.71 million. WesBanco had a net margin of 23.35% and a return on equity of 9.72%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that WesBanco, Inc. will post 3.57 EPS for the current year.

WesBanco Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th were paid a dividend of $0.38 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 5th. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. WesBanco’s payout ratio is 44.19%.

WesBanco announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, May 20th that permits the company to buyback 4,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other WesBanco news, EVP Kimberly L. Griffith sold 6,875 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.20, for a total value of $283,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 15,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $653,349.60. This represents a 30.24% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Jan Pattishall-Krupinski sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.71, for a total value of $165,195.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 35,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,318,770.04. This represents a 11.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 16,125 shares of company stock worth $646,482 in the last quarter. 2.07% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On WesBanco

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WSBC. Bayview Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in WesBanco by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Bayview Asset Management LLC now owns 80,300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,669,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of WesBanco by 41.1% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,113 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 324 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth Financial Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of WesBanco by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. Commonwealth Financial Services LLC now owns 10,329 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $356,000 after buying an additional 342 shares during the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of WesBanco by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 50,414 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,677,000 after buying an additional 357 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its position in shares of WesBanco by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 13,341 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $443,000 after buying an additional 390 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.41% of the company’s stock.

WesBanco Company Profile

WesBanco, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Wheeling, West Virginia, offering a full range of community banking services through its principal subsidiary, WesBanco Bank, Inc The company serves individual consumers, small‐ to mid‐sized businesses, nonprofit organizations and governmental entities with a relationship‐driven approach and an emphasis on local decision‐making. Through its diversified platform, WesBanco provides core banking functions such as deposit accounts, commercial and consumer lending, mortgage banking, treasury management and electronic banking services.

In addition to traditional banking products, WesBanco offers specialized services including trust and wealth management, investment advisory and insurance solutions.