Sei Investments Co. Lowers Holdings in Webster Financial Corporation $WBS

Key Points

• Sei Investments Co. cut its Webster Financial stake by 11.1% in the first quarter, selling 199,022 shares and ending with 1,592,919 shares valued at about $110.6 million.
• Webster Financial reported Q2 earnings of $1.60 per share, just below analyst expectations, while revenue came in at $739.99 million versus the $755.80 million estimate.
• The company continues to return cash to shareholders with a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, equal to an annualized yield of about 2.1%.

Sei Investments Co. trimmed its holdings in Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS - Free Report) by 11.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,592,919 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 199,022 shares during the quarter. Sei Investments Co. owned approximately 0.98% of Webster Financial worth $110,580,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Webster Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $142,035,000. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 7,442.8% in the third quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 2,032,937 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $120,838,000 after buying an additional 2,005,985 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new position in shares of Webster Financial during the first quarter worth $109,754,000. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Webster Financial by 221.0% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,565,623 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $85,483,000 after acquiring an additional 1,077,819 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Artemis Investment Management LLP purchased a new position in Webster Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $56,253,000. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Webster Financial Price Performance

Webster Financial stock opened at $75.44 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $12.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.27 and a beta of 1.00. The firm's fifty day moving average is $74.51 and its 200 day moving average is $71.33. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. Webster Financial Corporation has a 52-week low of $52.69 and a 52-week high of $77.69.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.61 by ($0.01). Webster Financial had a return on equity of 11.23% and a net margin of 22.78%.The business had revenue of $739.99 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $755.80 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.52 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Webster Financial Corporation will post 6.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 21st. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Webster Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $79.00 to $77.50 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on Webster Financial in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $69.00 target price on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $74.04.

Webster Financial Profile

Webster Financial Corporation is a bank holding company headquartered in Waterbury, Connecticut. Through its principal subsidiary, Webster Bank, N.A., the company offers a broad range of banking products and financial services to individuals, small businesses, and middle-market commercial clients. Key offerings include deposit accounts, residential and commercial real estate lending, equipment finance, treasury management, and payment processing solutions.

In addition to traditional banking services, Webster Financial provides wealth management and insurance products designed to help clients plan for retirement, preserve assets, and manage risk.

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