7,394 Shares in Webster Financial Corporation $WBS Purchased by Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased 7,394 shares of Webster Financial Corporation, valued at approximately $404,000, cementing a new position in the financial services provider during Q2.
• Several hedge funds have increased their stakes, with over 85.58% of Webster Financial's stock now owned by institutional investors.
• The company reported a quarterly earnings per share of $1.54, beating estimates, with anticipated annual earnings of 5.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 7,394 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $404,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Pzena Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Webster Financial by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 1,612,758 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $88,057,000 after purchasing an additional 23,605 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC increased its stake in Webster Financial by 168.8% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 38,303 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,091,000 after purchasing an additional 24,052 shares in the last quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. increased its stake in Webster Financial by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 45,563 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,488,000 after purchasing an additional 493 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC increased its stake in Webster Financial by 6.4% in the 2nd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 7,094 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $387,000 after purchasing an additional 424 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Webster Financial by 8.1% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 8,744 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $477,000 after purchasing an additional 654 shares in the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Webster Financial

In related news, CAO Elzbieta Cieslik sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.58, for a total transaction of $123,160.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 14,894 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $917,172.52. This trade represents a 11.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.95, for a total transaction of $463,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 239,872 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,900,582.40. The trade was a 3.23% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 28,630 shares of company stock worth $1,694,449 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

Webster Financial Trading Up 2.4%

NYSE:WBS opened at $56.14 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $9.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.45, a P/E/G ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.05. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $59.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $55.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. Webster Financial Corporation has a 52 week low of $39.43 and a 52 week high of $63.99.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $732.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $725.22 million. Webster Financial had a net margin of 21.32% and a return on equity of 11.07%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.34 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Webster Financial Corporation will post 5.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Investors of record on Monday, August 11th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. Webster Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.80%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Cowen assumed coverage on Webster Financial in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $78.00 price target on shares of Webster Financial in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $65.00 price target (down previously from $68.00) on shares of Webster Financial in a research note on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Webster Financial from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $69.00 target price on shares of Webster Financial in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $69.69.

Webster Financial Company Profile

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.

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