Gabelli Funds LLC Sells 13,500 Shares of Webster Financial Corporation $WBS

Key Points

• Gabelli Funds LLC reduced its stake in Webster Financial Corporation by 40.2%, selling 13,500 shares and holding 20,100 shares valued at approximately $1,036,000.
• Insider Charles L. Wilkins sold 5,000 shares for a total of $266,250, while CAO Albert Jen-Wen Wang sold 3,250 shares valued at $196,007.50, indicating significant insider selling activity.
• Webster Financial's stock has a current market cap of $10.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.62, and analysts predict earnings of $5.88 per share for the current year.

Gabelli Funds LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS - Free Report) by 40.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 20,100 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 13,500 shares during the quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC's holdings in Webster Financial were worth $1,036,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of WBS. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 1,253.3% during the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,120,914 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $61,897,000 after purchasing an additional 1,038,085 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its position in Webster Financial by 43.0% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 2,547,225 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $140,658,000 after purchasing an additional 766,019 shares during the last quarter. FJ Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Webster Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,177,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 7.4% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,108,082 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $366,408,000 after buying an additional 487,264 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Webster Financial during the 1st quarter valued at $23,603,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.58% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, 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 owned 30,915 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,830,168. This represents a 35.24% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Charles L. Wilkins sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.25, for a total value of $266,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 31,534 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,679,185.50. The trade was a 13.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 38,445 shares of company stock worth $2,250,007. Company insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on WBS. Raymond James Financial increased their target price on Webster Financial from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Webster Financial from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Webster Financial from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Webster Financial in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $65.00 target price for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $66.77.

Webster Financial Trading Up 1.1%

NYSE WBS traded up $0.66 on Thursday, hitting $62.43. The company's stock had a trading volume of 370,689 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,287,844. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The firm has a market cap of $10.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.66, a PEG ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 1.07. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $58.81 and its 200 day simple moving average is $53.44. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.52 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $715.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $716.59 million. Webster Financial had a return on equity of 10.84% and a net margin of 20.06%.The firm's revenue was up 16.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.26 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Webster Financial Corporation will post 5.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Shareholders 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 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. Webster Financial's payout ratio is presently 32.45%.

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.