Stablepoint Partners LLC Sells 9,387 Shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Stablepoint Partners LLC reduced its stake in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 9.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 85,129 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 9,387 shares during the period. Stablepoint Partners LLC’s holdings in Webster Financial were worth $4,388,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in WBS. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ acquired a new position in shares of Webster Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Webster Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in Webster Financial by 171.2% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,025 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 647 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 78.7% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,117 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 492 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Spurstone Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Webster Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $61,000. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Webster Financial news, insider Daniel Bley sold 1,800 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.84, for a total transaction of $86,112.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 21,517 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,029,373.28. The trade was a 7.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Lauren States sold 2,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.80, for a total transaction of $111,760.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 14,620 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $742,696. This trade represents a 13.08% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 13,000 shares of company stock worth $667,960 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WBS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Raymond James lowered their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $65.00 to $58.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $80.00 to $72.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Webster Financial in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $65.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $75.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $75.00 to $66.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $63.75.

Webster Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WBS opened at $52.29 on Friday. Webster Financial Co. has a twelve month low of $39.34 and a twelve month high of $63.99. The company’s 50 day moving average is $48.47 and its 200 day moving average is $53.86. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The company has a market cap of $8.80 billion, a PE ratio of 11.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.98.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.38 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $704.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $708.46 million. Webster Financial had a return on equity of 10.82% and a net margin of 18.39%. Webster Financial’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.35 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.88 EPS for the current year.

Webster Financial announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, May 1st that allows the company to repurchase $700.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire up to 8.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.06%. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.04%.

About Webster Financial

Webster Financial Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Webster Bank, National Association that provides a range of financial products and services to individuals, families, and businesses in the United States. It operates through three segments: Commercial Banking, HSA Bank, and Consumer Banking.