Nomura Holdings Inc. Purchases Shares of 22,744 Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Nomura Holdings Inc. bought a new position in shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 22,744 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,256,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barclays PLC grew its position in Webster Financial by 36.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 297,834 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $13,883,000 after purchasing an additional 79,556 shares in the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management bought a new position in Webster Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $298,000. Park Avenue Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Webster Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $246,000. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Webster Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $269,000. Finally, HB Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Webster Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $316,000. Institutional investors own 85.58% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Daniel Bley sold 1,800 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.84, for a total transaction of $86,112.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 21,517 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,029,373.28. This represents a 7.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.43, for a total value of $459,440.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 210,051 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,063,228.93. The trade was a 3.67% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 11,000 shares of company stock worth $605,516 in the last three months. 0.54% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Webster Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WBS traded down $1.96 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $50.69. The stock had a trading volume of 2,306,279 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,264,895. The company's 50-day moving average price is $48.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $54.32. The company has a market capitalization of $8.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. Webster Financial Co. has a fifty-two week low of $39.34 and a fifty-two week high of $63.99.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.38 by ($0.08). Webster Financial had a net margin of 18.39% and a return on equity of 10.82%. The firm had revenue of $704.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $708.46 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.35 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Thursday, May 1st that permits the company to repurchase $700.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 8.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.16%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 12th. Webster Financial's payout ratio is 36.04%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Webster Financial from $75.00 to $60.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Webster Financial in a research report on Wednesday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $65.00 price objective for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on Webster Financial from $70.00 to $65.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $75.00 to $66.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada set a $60.00 target price on shares of Webster Financial and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $63.75.

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.