Pallas Capital Advisors LLC Invests $474,000 in Webster Financial Corporation $WBS

Key Points

• Pallas Capital Advisors LLC invested approximately $474,000 in Webster Financial Corporation by acquiring 8,679 shares during the second quarter of 2023.
• Webster Financial reported a quarterly earnings per share of $1.52, exceeding analysts' expectations, with a year-over-year revenue increase of 16.5%.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 2.6% and a payout ratio of 32.45%.

Pallas Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 8,679 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $474,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of WBS. Picton Mahoney Asset Management bought a new position in Webster Financial in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in Webster Financial by 327.2% in the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 739 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 566 shares during the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC grew its position in Webster Financial by 118.4% in the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 832 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 451 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its position in Webster Financial by 43.7% in the 1st quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 941 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 286 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in Webster Financial by 171.2% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,025 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 647 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.58% of the company's stock.

Webster Financial Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE WBS traded up $0.05 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $60.74. 246,439 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,310,491. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.32, a PEG ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.86. Webster Financial Corporation has a 52-week low of $39.43 and a 52-week high of $63.99. The company's 50-day moving average is $59.76 and its 200-day moving average is $53.96.

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

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays increased their price target on Webster Financial from $72.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Raymond James Financial increased their price target on Webster Financial from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Webster Financial from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $69.00 price target on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Truist Financial reissued a "buy" rating and set a $67.00 price target (up previously from $61.00) on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $67.00.

Insider Activity

In other Webster Financial news, Director William L. Atwell sold 16,823 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.20, for a total value of $995,921.60. Following the sale, the director owned 30,915 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,830,168. This trade represents a 35.24% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Albert Jen-Wen Wang sold 3,250 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.31, for a total value of $196,007.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 15,755 shares in the company, valued at $950,184.05. This represents a 17.10% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 36,445 shares of company stock worth $2,168,537 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

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.