Azora Capital LP Decreases Stock Position in Webster Financial Corporation $WBS

Key Points

• Azora Capital LP has reduced its stake in Webster Financial Corporation by 38%, selling 888,078 shares and now holding approximately 1.45 million shares, representing 5.1% of its portfolio.
• The company reported a net margin of 20.06% with quarterly earnings of $1.52 per share, exceeding analyst expectations of $1.43.
• Webster Financial has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share and a share buyback plan authorized for up to $700 million.

Azora Capital LP lessened its holdings in shares of Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS - Free Report) by 38.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,446,038 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 888,078 shares during the quarter. Webster Financial comprises approximately 5.1% of Azora Capital LP's holdings, making the stock its 7th largest position. Azora Capital LP owned approximately 0.86% of Webster Financial worth $74,543,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 327.8% in the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 5,001 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $276,000 after buying an additional 3,832 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new position in shares of Webster Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $210,000. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 5,912 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $326,000 after buying an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Webster Financial by 27.5% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,528,459 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $84,402,000 after purchasing an additional 329,267 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Comerica Bank grew its stake in Webster Financial by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 66,865 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,692,000 after purchasing an additional 4,295 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.58% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.95, for a total value of $463,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 239,872 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,900,582.40. This represents a 3.23% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director William L. Atwell sold 16,823 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.20, for a total value of $995,921.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 30,915 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,830,168. The trade was a 35.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 38,445 shares of company stock worth $2,250,007 in the last 90 days. 0.54% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Webster Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WBS traded down $0.67 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $61.58. 274,648 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,288,487. Webster Financial Corporation has a 1-year low of $39.43 and a 1-year high of $63.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.50, a PEG ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 1.07. The company's 50-day moving average price is $58.64 and its 200-day moving average price is $53.39.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.52 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $715.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $716.59 million. Webster Financial had a return on equity of 10.84% and a net margin of 20.06%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 16.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.26 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Webster Financial Corporation will post 5.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 11th were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Webster Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 32.45%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on WBS. Citigroup upped their price target on Webster Financial from $65.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Truist Financial reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $67.00 price target (up previously from $61.00) on shares of Webster Financial in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Barclays upped their price target on Webster Financial from $72.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Webster Financial in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. They set a "buy" rating and a $65.00 price target for the company. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $69.00 price target on shares of Webster Financial in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Webster Financial currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $66.77.

Webster Financial 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.