State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Increases Stock Position in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D increased its holdings in shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 5.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 50,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,520 shares during the period. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D’s holdings in Webster Financial were worth $2,368,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Webster Financial by 28.0% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,522,044 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $240,687,000 after buying an additional 1,206,575 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its position in shares of Webster Financial by 64.9% in the 2nd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,604,198 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $69,927,000 after acquiring an additional 631,080 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Webster Financial during the 3rd quarter worth $22,146,000. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its position in Webster Financial by 1,482.9% during the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 339,246 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $14,801,000 after purchasing an additional 317,814 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Earnest Partners LLC grew its stake in Webster Financial by 11.2% in the first quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 3,072,624 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $155,997,000 after purchasing an additional 308,455 shares during the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Webster Financial news, insider Javier L. Evans sold 10,137 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.41, for a total value of $581,965.17. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 22,657 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,300,738.37. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, insider Javier L. Evans sold 10,137 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.41, for a total transaction of $581,965.17. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 22,657 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,300,738.37. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Mark Pettie sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.14, for a total transaction of $230,130.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 32,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,676,369.20. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 22,100 shares of company stock valued at $1,202,237 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Webster Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WBS opened at $59.84 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. Webster Financial Co. has a 52 week low of $39.33 and a 52 week high of $61.12. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $49.16 and its 200 day moving average price is $46.28. The firm has a market cap of $10.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.57, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.27.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.35 by ($0.01). Webster Financial had a return on equity of 11.03% and a net margin of 18.80%. The business had revenue of $647.62 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $677.72 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.55 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.67%. Webster Financial’s payout ratio is 36.28%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on WBS shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Webster Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Wedbush raised their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $52.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Stephens set a $58.00 price target on shares of Webster Financial in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Webster Financial from $57.00 to $54.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Webster Financial from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $57.85.

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.