Hsbc Holdings PLC Has $2.07 Million Position in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Hsbc Holdings PLC lowered its stake in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS - Free Report) by 66.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 37,471 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 75,153 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC's holdings in Webster Financial were worth $2,066,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ bought a new stake in Webster Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Webster Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Webster Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $43,000. UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 88.1% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,119 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 524 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd raised its position in Webster Financial by 742.7% in the 4th quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 1,264 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $70,000 after buying an additional 1,114 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.58% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on WBS shares. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $80.00 to $72.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Raymond James lowered their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $65.00 to $58.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $75.00 to $66.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on Webster Financial from $70.00 to $65.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada set a $60.00 price target on Webster Financial and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Webster Financial currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $62.73.

Webster Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WBS traded up $1.90 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $49.71. 1,064,013 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,253,551. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.37 billion, a PE ratio of 11.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.05. Webster Financial Co. has a 12 month low of $39.34 and a 12 month high of $63.99. The company's 50 day moving average price is $48.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $54.40.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.38 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $704.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $708.46 million. Webster Financial had a net margin of 18.39% and a return on equity of 10.82%. Webster Financial's revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.35 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 12th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.22%. Webster Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.04%.

Webster Financial announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, May 1st that authorizes the company to buyback $700.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 8.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Webster Financial

In other Webster Financial news, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.43, for a total value of $459,440.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 210,051 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,063,228.93. The trade was a 3.67 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Laurence C. Morse sold 13,217 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.07, for a total value of $780,728.19. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 18,808 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,110,988.56. This trade represents a 41.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 23,017 shares of company stock valued at $1,326,280 in the last ninety days. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.