WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) Reaches New 52-Week High – What’s Next?

WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC)’s share price reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $37.25 and last traded at $37.10, with a volume of 43587 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $36.45.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $35.00 price target on shares of WesBanco in a research report on Monday, September 9th. DA Davidson boosted their target price on WesBanco from $35.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Stephens increased their target price on shares of WesBanco from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Hovde Group boosted their price target on shares of WesBanco from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of WesBanco from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $36.17.

WesBanco Stock Performance

The business has a fifty day moving average of $31.75 and a 200-day moving average of $30.21. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The company has a market cap of $2.47 billion, a PE ratio of 17.82 and a beta of 0.81.

WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.03. WesBanco had a return on equity of 5.75% and a net margin of 14.79%. The company had revenue of $243.34 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $152.40 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.59 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that WesBanco, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WesBanco Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th will be given a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 6th. This is an increase from WesBanco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.01%. WesBanco’s payout ratio is 70.81%.

Insider Activity at WesBanco

In other WesBanco news, EVP Michael L. Perkins sold 1,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.87, for a total transaction of $39,228.75. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 46,817 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,632,508.79. This trade represents a 2.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 3.44% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quarry LP grew its holdings in shares of WesBanco by 215.3% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,337 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 913 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in shares of WesBanco by 214.5% in the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,384 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 944 shares during the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of WesBanco during the 2nd quarter valued at about $53,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of WesBanco in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $56,000. Finally, CWM LLC raised its holdings in WesBanco by 175.2% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,072 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 1,319 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.41% of the company’s stock.

WesBanco Company Profile

WesBanco, Inc operates as the bank holding company for WesBanco Bank, Inc that provides retail banking, corporate banking, personal and corporate trust, brokerage, mortgage banking, and insurance services to individuals and businesses in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Community Banking, and Trust and Investment Services.