Hennessy Advisors Inc. Sells 4,000 Shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Hennessy Advisors Inc. trimmed its position in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 12.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 28,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 4,000 shares during the quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Webster Financial were worth $1,422,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Webster Financial by 29.7% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,114 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 255 shares in the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management grew its position in Webster Financial by 79.1% in the fourth quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 607 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 268 shares in the last quarter. Mariner LLC grew its position in Webster Financial by 2.4% in the third quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 13,812 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $557,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital grew its position in Webster Financial by 6.5% in the first quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 6,054 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $294,000 after acquiring an additional 367 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its position in Webster Financial by 0.5% in the third quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 76,239 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,073,000 after acquiring an additional 390 shares in the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on Webster Financial from $57.00 to $54.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Webster Financial from $63.00 to $58.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Barclays dropped their target price on Webster Financial from $65.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on Webster Financial from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $56.17.

Webster Financial Trading Up 5.1 %

Shares of NYSE WBS traded up $2.13 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $43.59. The stock had a trading volume of 2,517,060 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,158,947. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The firm has a market cap of $7.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.50, a P/E/G ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 1.31. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $43.70 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $47.14. Webster Financial Co. has a 52-week low of $36.36 and a 52-week high of $53.39.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $667.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $680.72 million. Webster Financial had a net margin of 21.09% and a return on equity of 12.55%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.49 EPS. Analysts expect that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 16th. Investors of record on Monday, May 6th were paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 3rd. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.79%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Daniel Bley sold 2,280 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.80, for a total value of $102,144.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 28,693 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,285,446.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.