Wedbush Equities Analysts Reduce Earnings Estimates for Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS - Free Report) - Wedbush reduced their Q1 2024 earnings estimates for shares of Webster Financial in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, March 27th. Wedbush analyst D. Chiaverini now forecasts that the financial services provider will earn $1.33 per share for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $1.37. The consensus estimate for Webster Financial's current full-year earnings is $5.90 per share. Wedbush also issued estimates for Webster Financial's FY2024 earnings at $5.90 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $1.54 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $1.60 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $1.70 EPS and Q4 2025 earnings at $1.76 EPS.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $64.00 target price on shares of Webster Financial in a research note on Tuesday. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $59.00 target price on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Raymond James restated an "outperform" rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Tuesday. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $60.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $51.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $57.31.

Webster Financial Stock Down 0.1 %

WBS traded down $0.07 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $50.74. 1,017,886 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,142,655. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $48.51 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $45.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.71 billion, a PE ratio of 10.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.34 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. Webster Financial has a 1 year low of $31.03 and a 1 year high of $53.39.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.46 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.48 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $996.96 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $674.82 million. Webster Financial had a return on equity of 13.05% and a net margin of 22.01%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.60 earnings per share.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Webster Financial

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Webster Financial by 0.7% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 17,679,692 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $799,122,000 after buying an additional 116,092 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. raised its position in shares of Webster Financial by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 17,498,723 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $689,800,000 after acquiring an additional 362,728 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors lifted its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 18.2% in the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 9,297,676 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $521,886,000 after purchasing an additional 1,433,204 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Webster Financial by 9.8% in the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,904,283 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $311,587,000 after purchasing an additional 707,001 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 22.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,258,411 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $292,587,000 after buying an additional 1,339,862 shares in the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Webster Financial

In other news, insider Daniel Bley sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.60, for a total transaction of $95,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 27,955 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,330,658. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Webster Financial news, insider Daniel Bley sold 2,000 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.60, for a total transaction of $95,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 27,955 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,330,658. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Charles L. Wilkins sold 3,966 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.56, for a total transaction of $204,486.96. Following the sale, the insider now owns 49,528 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,553,663.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 34,941 shares of company stock valued at $1,796,482. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 5th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 2nd. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.15%. Webster Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.72%.

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.