40,000 Shares in Webster Financial Corporation $WBS Purchased by Vazirani Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• Vazirani Asset Management purchased 40,000 Webster Financial shares in the second quarter, valued at approximately $3.06 million. Institutional investors collectively own 85.58% of the company.
• Webster Financial reported quarterly revenue of $769.23 million, exceeding estimates, while earnings per share of $1.60 narrowly missed consensus by $0.01. Revenue increased 3.4% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, equivalent to an annualized $1.60 payout and a 2.1% yield. Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with an average price target of $74.25.

Vazirani Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 40,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,056,800. Webster Financial accounts for 0.0% of Vazirani Asset Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of WBS. Artemis Investment Management LLP bought a new stake in shares of Webster Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $56,253,000. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC grew its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 95.4% in the first quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC now owns 33,038 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,294,000 after purchasing an additional 16,132 shares during the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Webster Financial in the 2nd quarter worth about $747,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in Webster Financial in the second quarter worth about $101,039,000. Finally, Whitebox Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Webster Financial in the first quarter worth about $133,634,000. 85.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Webster Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WBS remained flat at $77.57 during trading hours on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.57 billion, a PE ratio of 12.61 and a beta of 1.01. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $77.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $73.44. Webster Financial Corporation has a 1 year low of $52.69 and a 1 year high of $79.74. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.61 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $769.23 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $755.80 million. Webster Financial had a net margin of 22.78% and a return on equity of 11.23%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.52 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Webster Financial Corporation will post 6.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Investors of record on Monday, August 10th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 10th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Webster Financial's payout ratio is 26.02%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WBS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Webster Financial in a research note on Friday, June 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Barclays increased their price target on Webster Financial from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on Webster Financial from $79.00 to $77.50 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $74.25.

Webster Financial Profile

Webster Financial Corporation is a bank holding company headquartered in Waterbury, Connecticut. Through its principal subsidiary, Webster Bank, N.A., the company offers a broad range of banking products and financial services to individuals, small businesses, and middle-market commercial clients. Key offerings include deposit accounts, residential and commercial real estate lending, equipment finance, treasury management, and payment processing solutions.

In addition to traditional banking services, Webster Financial provides wealth management and insurance products designed to help clients plan for retirement, preserve assets, and manage risk.

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