Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday. The financial services provider reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.08, RTT News reports. The firm had revenue of $661.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $687,532.71 billion. Webster Financial had a return on equity of 11.03% and a net margin of 18.80%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.46 earnings per share.

Webster Financial Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of WBS stock opened at $57.91 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $9.93 billion, a PE ratio of 13.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $58.08 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $50.90. Webster Financial has a 1 year low of $39.33 and a 1 year high of $63.99.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.76%. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.28%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WBS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Webster Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 11th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Webster Financial from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Webster Financial from $57.00 to $54.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 30th. UBS Group initiated coverage on Webster Financial in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $76.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $61.58.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Mark Pettie sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.14, for a total value of $230,130.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 32,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,676,369.20. This trade represents a 12.07 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Daniel Bley sold 3,463 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.10, for a total transaction of $180,422.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 19,529 shares in the company, valued at $1,017,460.90. This represents a 15.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 37,250 shares of company stock valued at $2,105,322 over the last three months. 0.88% of the stock is owned by company 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.