Pzena Investment Management LLC Buys 23,605 Shares of Webster Financial Corporation $WBS

Key Points

• Pzena Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Webster Financial Corporation by 1.5% during the second quarter, acquiring an additional 23,605 shares, bringing their total ownership to approximately 1.6 million shares valued at $88 million.
• Webster Financial recently reported a quarterly earnings per share of $1.52, surpassing analysts' expectations and showing significant revenue growth, despite a 6% decline in stock value to $55.64.
• The firm also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 2.9%, with a payout ratio of 32.45% as of the last report.

Pzena Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS - Free Report) by 1.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,612,758 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 23,605 shares during the period. Pzena Investment Management LLC owned about 0.96% of Webster Financial worth $88,057,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Picton Mahoney Asset Management bought a new position in Webster Financial during the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 327.2% in the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 739 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 566 shares in the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC boosted its position in shares of Webster Financial by 118.4% during the first quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 832 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 451 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc grew its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 3,628.6% during the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 783 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 762 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 43.7% during the first quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 941 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 286 shares in the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Webster Financial

In other news, insider James Mi Griffin sold 2,065 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.56, for a total transaction of $125,056.40. Following the transaction, the insider owned 13,363 shares in the company, valued at approximately $809,263.28. This trade represents a 13.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Jason A. Soto sold 2,500 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.21, for a total value of $153,025.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 18,889 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,156,195.69. The trade was a 11.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 36,445 shares of company stock worth $2,168,537. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Webster Financial Stock Down 6.0%

WBS stock opened at $55.64 on Monday. Webster Financial Corporation has a 1-year low of $39.43 and a 1-year high of $63.99. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $59.77 and its 200 day simple moving average is $54.79. 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 capitalization of $9.25 billion, a PE ratio of 11.29, a PEG ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 1.05.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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. Webster Financial had a net margin of 20.06% and a return on equity of 10.84%. The firm had revenue of $715.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $716.59 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.26 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 16.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Webster Financial Corporation will post 5.88 EPS for the current year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Investors of record on Monday, August 11th were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 11th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. Webster Financial's dividend payout ratio is 32.45%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on WBS. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Webster Financial from $70.00 to $68.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $64.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a report on Monday, September 29th. TD Cowen started coverage on shares of Webster Financial in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $78.00 price target on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Wednesday, September 10th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $70.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Webster Financial from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $68.73.

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.

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