WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC) Given Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Shares of WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC - Get Free Report) have earned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the seven analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $38.71.

Several research analysts recently weighed in on WSBC shares. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on WesBanco from $36.00 to $34.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of WesBanco from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of WesBanco in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $37.00 target price on the stock. DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of WesBanco from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Raymond James dropped their price target on WesBanco from $44.00 to $38.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On WesBanco

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WSBC. Barclays PLC raised its stake in WesBanco by 151.1% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 181,325 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,399,000 after purchasing an additional 109,104 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. purchased a new position in shares of WesBanco during the third quarter valued at $1,148,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of WesBanco by 17.1% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 232,568 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $6,926,000 after buying an additional 34,008 shares in the last quarter. Hilltop National Bank raised its position in WesBanco by 19.6% during the fourth quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 2,518 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $82,000 after buying an additional 413 shares during the period. Finally, Moody National Bank Trust Division lifted its stake in WesBanco by 33.0% in the 4th quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division now owns 29,872 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $972,000 after acquiring an additional 7,405 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.41% of the company's stock.

WesBanco Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WSBC traded up $0.13 during trading on Friday, reaching $30.27. The company had a trading volume of 534,026 shares, compared to its average volume of 428,900. The firm's fifty day moving average is $30.29 and its 200 day moving average is $32.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.03 billion, a PE ratio of 13.51 and a beta of 0.81. WesBanco has a twelve month low of $25.56 and a twelve month high of $37.36.

WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $253.23 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $206.63 million. WesBanco had a return on equity of 6.30% and a net margin of 15.89%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.56 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that WesBanco will post 3.24 EPS for the current year.

WesBanco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.89%. WesBanco's dividend payout ratio is currently 96.73%.

About WesBanco

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.