Franklin Resources Inc. Has $7.43 Million Holdings in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Franklin Resources Inc. cut its stake in shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 21.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 134,587 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 37,399 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Webster Financial were worth $7,432,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ acquired a new stake in Webster Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in Webster Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $43,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in Webster Financial by 88.1% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,119 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 524 shares in the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in Webster Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $105,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Webster Financial by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,045 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $113,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares in the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Webster Financial

In other Webster Financial news, Director Laurence C. Morse sold 13,217 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.07, for a total transaction of $780,728.19. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 18,808 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,110,988.56. The trade was a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.43, for a total transaction of $459,440.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 210,051 shares in the company, valued at $12,063,228.93. The trade was a 3.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.72% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Webster Financial Trading Up 11.7 %

Shares of Webster Financial stock opened at $46.68 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.00 billion, a PE ratio of 10.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $53.03 and its 200 day moving average is $54.44. Webster Financial Co. has a 1 year low of $39.34 and a 1 year high of $63.99.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.08. The company 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 in the previous year, the firm posted $1.46 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.43%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.61%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on WBS. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $80.00 to $72.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $75.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Webster Financial in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $76.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Webster Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $61.92.

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.