Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd Reduces Stock Position in Webster Financial Corporation $WBS

Key Points

• Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd reduced its stake in Webster Financial Corporation by 56.5%, selling 14,273 shares, and now owns 10,970 shares worth $566,000.
• Webster Financial reported a quarterly EPS of $1.52, beating the consensus estimate, and achieved a 16.5% increase in revenue compared to the same quarter last year.
• The company's recent dividend of $0.40 per share represents an annual yield of 2.6%, with a payout ratio of 32.45%.

Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd lessened its stake in shares of Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS - Free Report) by 56.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 10,970 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 14,273 shares during the period. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd's holdings in Webster Financial were worth $566,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other 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 $25,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Webster Financial by 327.2% during the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 739 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 566 shares during the period. TCTC Holdings LLC increased 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 acquiring an additional 451 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP increased 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 acquiring an additional 286 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc increased 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 acquiring an additional 647 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.58% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on WBS. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Webster Financial in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $65.00 price target on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on Webster Financial in a research note on Wednesday, September 10th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $70.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $69.00 price target on shares of Webster Financial in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Raymond James Financial lifted their price target on Webster Financial from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Webster Financial from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $67.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.95, for a total value of $463,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 239,872 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,900,582.40. This represents a 3.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider James Mi Griffin sold 807 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.14, for a total value of $50,146.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 12,556 shares in the company, valued at approximately $780,229.84. The trade was a 6.04% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 36,445 shares of company stock worth $2,168,537. Company insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

Webster Financial Trading Down 1.9%

WBS traded down $1.17 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $59.45. 2,530,942 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,115,974. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.06, a P/E/G ratio of 0.56 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 firm's 50 day moving average price is $59.60 and its 200-day moving average price is $53.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $715.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $716.59 million. Webster Financial had a return on equity of 10.84% and a net margin of 20.06%.The firm's revenue was up 16.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.26 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Webster Financial Corporation will post 5.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Investors of record on Monday, August 11th were given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. Webster Financial's payout ratio is presently 32.45%.

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.