Trexquant Investment LP Takes Position in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Trexquant Investment LP purchased a new position in shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund purchased 54,027 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,983,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WBS. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in Webster Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Webster Financial by 16.8% during the 4th quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 9,137 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $505,000 after purchasing an additional 1,316 shares during the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its holdings in Webster Financial by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 23,494 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,297,000 after buying an additional 933 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Webster Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $120,497,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Webster Financial by 14.2% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 513,836 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,374,000 after buying an additional 63,926 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Raymond James reduced 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Webster Financial from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Webster Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $70.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group began coverage on Webster Financial in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $76.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Webster Financial from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $62.92.

Webster Financial Stock Down 5.0 %

WBS stock opened at $41.75 on Monday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $54.62 and its 200 day moving average price is $54.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.55, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.05. Webster Financial Co. has a fifty-two week low of $39.34 and a fifty-two week high of $63.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.84.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $661.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $687.53 million. Webster Financial had a net margin of 18.39% and a return on equity of 10.82%. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.46 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.83%. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.61%.

Insider Activity

In other Webster Financial news, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were 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 owns 210,051 shares in the company, valued at $12,063,228.93. This represents a 3.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Laurence C. Morse sold 13,217 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 18,808 shares in the company, valued at $1,110,988.56. This trade represents a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

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.