Wellington Management Group LLP Boosts Stock Position in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 57.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 770,684 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 281,686 shares during the quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP owned approximately 0.45% of Webster Financial worth $35,922,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WBS. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position 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 during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in Webster Financial by 64.9% in the second quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,604,198 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $69,927,000 after purchasing an additional 631,080 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can raised its holdings in Webster Financial by 182.7% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 959,180 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $44,496,000 after purchasing an additional 619,934 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Webster Financial during the third quarter valued at about $22,146,000. Finally, State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,320,930 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $341,229,000 after buying an additional 333,606 shares in the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Stephens set a $58.00 price target on Webster Financial in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Webster Financial from $57.00 to $54.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Barclays upped their target price on Webster Financial from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Webster Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $59.08.

Webster Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WBS opened at $59.06 on Friday. Webster Financial Co. has a 52 week low of $39.33 and a 52 week high of $63.99. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $55.46 and its 200 day moving average price is $48.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The firm has a market cap of $10.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.39, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.29.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by ($0.01). Webster Financial had a return on equity of 11.03% and a net margin of 18.80%. The business had revenue of $647.62 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $677.72 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.55 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.71%. Webster Financial’s payout ratio is 36.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Webster Financial 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 value of $230,130.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 32,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,676,369.20. This trade represents a 12.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Daniel Bley sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.91, for a total value of $30,955.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 17,279 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,069,742.89. The trade was a 2.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 37,250 shares of company stock valued at $2,105,322 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Webster Financial Company 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.