Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) CAO Elzbieta Cieslik Sells 1,000 Shares

Key Points

• Webster Financial's Chief Accounting Officer, Elzbieta Cieslik, sold 1,000 shares at $61.62, totaling $61,620, resulting in a 5.59% decrease in her stock ownership.
• The company recently reported a 1.52 EPS for the quarter, exceeding analysts' estimates, with a year-over-year revenue increase of 16.5%.
• Webster Financial announced a quarterly dividend of $0.40, resulting in a 2.6% yield and a dividend payout ratio of 32.45%.

Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS - Get Free Report) CAO Elzbieta Cieslik sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.62, for a total transaction of $61,620.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 16,894 shares in the company, valued at $1,041,008.28. The trade was a 5.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Elzbieta Cieslik also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, September 15th, Elzbieta Cieslik sold 2,000 shares of Webster Financial stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.58, for a total transaction of $123,160.00.

Webster Financial Stock Performance

NYSE WBS traded down $0.82 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $61.50. 3,389,612 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,252,437. Webster Financial Corporation has a 1 year low of $39.43 and a 1 year high of $63.99. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $59.74 and its 200-day simple moving average is $53.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.47, a P/E/G ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 1.07.

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

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 11th were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Webster Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.45%.

Institutional Trading of Webster Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Webster Financial by 7.4% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,108,082 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $366,408,000 after buying an additional 487,264 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 4.9% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,296,071 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $289,165,000 after purchasing an additional 246,774 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 0.9% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 4,597,943 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $237,025,000 after purchasing an additional 42,406 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 14.5% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,453,778 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $188,576,000 after purchasing an additional 438,131 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Webster Financial during the second quarter valued at approximately $131,780,000. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on WBS. Barclays raised their price target on Webster Financial from $72.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded Webster Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Wells Fargo & Company upped 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. UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $69.00 price target on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $67.00.

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.