Webster Financial Corporation $WBS Shares Sold by Raymond James Financial Inc.

Key Points

• Raymond James Financial Inc. reduced its holdings in Webster Financial Corporation by 2.1%, now owning approximately 0.16% of the company's stock valued at $13.47 million.
• Several institutional investors, including American Century Companies Inc. and Dimensional Fund Advisors, increased their stakes in Webster Financial during the first quarter, indicating strong institutional interest in the company.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, representing an annualized dividend yield of 2.6% and a payout ratio of 32.45%.

Raymond James Financial Inc. lessened its position in Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS - Free Report) by 2.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 261,252 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 5,596 shares during the quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.16% of Webster Financial worth $13,468,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Picton Mahoney Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Webster Financial in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 566 shares during the period. TCTC Holdings LLC grew its stake in Webster Financial by 118.4% during the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 832 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 451 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in Webster Financial by 43.7% during the 1st quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 941 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 286 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in Webster Financial by 171.2% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,025 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 647 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.58% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on WBS shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Webster Financial from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Raymond James Financial boosted their target price on Webster Financial from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Seaport Res Ptn cut Webster Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Truist Financial reissued a "buy" rating and set a $67.00 target price (up from $61.00) on shares of Webster Financial in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Finally, 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 note on Tuesday, July 1st. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $66.77.

Webster Financial Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:WBS traded down $0.06 on Monday, hitting $62.24. 928,210 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,114,863. The firm's 50-day moving average is $58.46 and its 200 day moving average is $53.32. The company has a market capitalization of $10.34 billion, a PE ratio of 12.62, a P/E/G ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 1.07. Webster Financial Corporation has a 1-year low of $39.43 and a 1-year high of $63.99. 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 (NYSE:WBS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 the consensus estimate of $716.59 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.26 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 16.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Webster Financial Corporation will post 5.88 EPS for the current year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Shareholders 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 currently 32.45%.

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 transaction of $995,921.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly 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 filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Albert Jen-Wen Wang sold 3,250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.31, for a total value of $196,007.50. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 15,755 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $950,184.05. This trade represents a 17.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 38,445 shares of company stock worth $2,250,007 over the last quarter. 0.54% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Webster Financial 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.