Alberta Investment Management Corp Takes $588,000 Position in WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC)

Key Points

• Alberta Investment Management Corp purchased 18,998 shares of WesBanco, Inc., valued at approximately $588,000, during the first quarter.
• WesBanco's recent quarterly earnings reported an EPS of $0.91, exceeding estimates, with a revenue of $260.73 million.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.37 per share, representing an annualized yield of 5.0% and a payout ratio of 89.16%.

Alberta Investment Management Corp purchased a new position in WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 18,998 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $588,000.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WSBC. Earnest Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of WesBanco by 27.1% in the fourth quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,777,002 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $57,824,000 after purchasing an additional 379,386 shares during the last quarter. Emerald Advisers LLC bought a new position in WesBanco in the first quarter valued at about $11,419,000. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in WesBanco by 104.8% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 371,347 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $12,084,000 after purchasing an additional 190,022 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of WesBanco by 29.8% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 749,178 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $23,195,000 after purchasing an additional 171,826 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of WesBanco in the fourth quarter worth about $5,345,000. Institutional investors own 61.41% of the company's stock.

WesBanco Trading Up 0.3%

NASDAQ:WSBC traded up $0.10 on Friday, hitting $29.54. 118,065 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 605,361. The stock has a market cap of $2.83 billion, a PE ratio of 17.79 and a beta of 0.87. WesBanco, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $26.42 and a fifty-two week high of $37.36. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $31.54 and a 200-day moving average of $31.80. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.87 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $260.73 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $261.14 million. WesBanco had a return on equity of 7.72% and a net margin of 11.65%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.49 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that WesBanco, Inc. will post 3.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WesBanco Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th were paid a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 6th. WesBanco's dividend payout ratio is 89.16%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on WSBC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on WesBanco from $43.00 to $40.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on WesBanco from $36.00 to $34.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $38.83.

WesBanco Company Profile

WesBanco, Inc operates as the bank holding company for WesBanco Bank, Inc that provides retail banking, corporate banking, personal and corporate trust, brokerage, mortgage banking, and insurance services to individuals and businesses in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Community Banking, and Trust and Investment Services.