Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Increases Stock Holdings in WesBanco, Inc. $WSBC

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in WesBanco, Inc. by 42.6% in the first quarter, owning 8.65% of the company worth approximately $179.4 million.
• WesBanco's stock is currently rated as a "Moderate Buy" by analysts, with a consensus price target of $38.83 despite recent price target reductions from several firms.
• The company's latest earnings report showed an EPS of $0.91, exceeding analysts' expectations by $0.04, and indicating a strong performance improvement over the previous year.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC - Free Report) by 42.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,793,319 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,730,801 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 8.65% of WesBanco worth $179,358,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Swiss National Bank lifted its stake in shares of WesBanco by 58.8% in the first quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 185,977 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,758,000 after buying an additional 68,832 shares in the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in WesBanco by 258.9% during the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 39,232 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,215,000 after purchasing an additional 28,302 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of WesBanco by 7.1% in the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 258,682 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $8,009,000 after purchasing an additional 17,172 shares during the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH purchased a new stake in shares of WesBanco in the first quarter worth approximately $2,108,000. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of WesBanco by 13.4% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 492,167 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $16,015,000 after purchasing an additional 58,214 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.41% of the company's stock.

WesBanco Stock Performance

WesBanco stock traded down $0.1450 during trading on Monday, hitting $32.6850. The stock had a trading volume of 22,130 shares, compared to its average volume of 596,608. The stock's 50 day moving average is $31.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $31.50. WesBanco, Inc. has a 1 year low of $26.42 and a 1 year high of $37.36. The stock has a market cap of $3.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.70 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.87 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $260.73 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $261.14 million. WesBanco had a net margin of 11.65% and a return on equity of 7.29%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.49 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that WesBanco, Inc. will post 3.24 EPS for the current year.

WesBanco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be issued a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.5%. WesBanco's payout ratio is currently 89.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WSBC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on WesBanco from $43.00 to $40.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on shares of WesBanco from $36.00 to $34.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $38.83.

WesBanco Profile

WesBanco, Inc operates as the bank holding company for WesBanco Bank, Inc that provides retail banking, corporate banking, personal and corporate trust, brokerage, mortgage banking, and insurance services to individuals and businesses in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Community Banking, and Trust and Investment Services.