Bank of Montreal Can Boosts Stock Position in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Bank of Montreal Can lifted its position in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 182.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 959,180 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 619,934 shares during the quarter. Bank of Montreal Can owned 0.56% of Webster Financial worth $44,496,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WBS. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 28.0% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,522,044 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $240,687,000 after purchasing an additional 1,206,575 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 64.9% in the 2nd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,604,198 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $69,927,000 after purchasing an additional 631,080 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new position in shares of Webster Financial in the 3rd quarter worth about $22,146,000. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 12.9% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,640,425 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $115,096,000 after purchasing an additional 301,935 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Samlyn Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Webster Financial by 58.3% during the 2nd quarter. Samlyn Capital LLC now owns 536,481 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $23,385,000 after acquiring an additional 197,679 shares during the period. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Webster Financial

In related news, Director Mark Pettie sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.14, for a total transaction of $230,130.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 32,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,676,369.20. This trade represents a 12.07 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Albert Jen-Wen Wang sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.43, for a total value of $209,720.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 14,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $748,333.39. This trade represents a 21.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 36,750 shares of company stock valued at $2,074,367. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Webster Financial Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE:WBS opened at $62.05 on Friday. Webster Financial Co. has a 52-week low of $39.33 and a 52-week high of $63.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.07, a P/E/G ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.27. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $52.38 and a 200-day moving average price of $47.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.35 by ($0.01). Webster Financial had a return on equity of 11.03% and a net margin of 18.80%. The firm had revenue of $647.62 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $677.72 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.55 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st were given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.28%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com cut Webster Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Webster Financial from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Stephens set a $58.00 target price on Webster Financial in a report on Thursday, October 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Webster Financial from $58.00 to $55.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Wedbush increased their target price on Webster Financial from $52.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Webster Financial has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $57.85.

Webster Financial 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.