Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Lowers Position in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 4.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,794,331 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 80,313 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC owned approximately 1.05% of Webster Financial worth $98,347,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. M&G PLC grew its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 9.4% during the third quarter. M&G PLC now owns 207,297 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,743,000 after purchasing an additional 17,746 shares in the last quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Webster Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $269,000. Hunter Perkins Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Webster Financial in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $4,761,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 76,570.5% in the 3rd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 72,837 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,395,000 after buying an additional 72,742 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Webster Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $246,000. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on WBS. Wedbush upped their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $52.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Webster Financial from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. StockNews.com raised Webster Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, January 11th. Stephens set a $58.00 target price on Webster Financial in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Webster Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $70.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $62.08.

Webster Financial Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE WBS opened at $58.78 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $57.73 and its 200 day moving average is $52.72. Webster Financial Co. has a 52 week low of $39.33 and a 52 week high of $63.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The company has a market cap of $10.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.45, a PEG ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.29.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $661.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $687.53 million. Webster Financial had a net margin of 18.39% and a return on equity of 10.82%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.46 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.72%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.61%.

Insider Transactions at Webster Financial

In other Webster Financial news, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.33, for a total value of $474,640.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 218,924 shares in the company, valued at $12,988,760.92. This trade represents a 3.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Daniel Bley sold 500 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.91, for a total value of $30,955.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 17,279 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,069,742.89. The trade was a 2.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 15,150 shares of company stock worth $903,085. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.