Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. Buys 3,911 Shares of Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its stake in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 5.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 76,748 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,911 shares during the quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc.’s holdings in Webster Financial were worth $4,238,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Webster Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $269,000. Park Avenue Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Webster Financial in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $246,000. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Webster Financial by 6.8% in the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 31,978 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,488,000 after acquiring an additional 2,032 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Webster Financial by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,468,942 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $68,467,000 after acquiring an additional 34,373 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 8.5% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 89,202 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,158,000 after acquiring an additional 6,964 shares in the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Webster Financial Price Performance

NYSE:WBS opened at $51.57 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $56.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $54.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The company has a market cap of $8.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.28. Webster Financial Co. has a one year low of $39.34 and a one year high of $63.99.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $661.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 prior year, the firm earned $1.46 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Webster Financial Announces Dividend

The company 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.10%. Webster Financial’s payout ratio is currently 36.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Webster Financial from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Barclays upped their target price on Webster Financial from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Webster Financial from $75.00 to $66.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Webster Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $70.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $63.08.

Insider Activity at Webster Financial

In other Webster Financial news, CEO John R. Ciulla sold 8,000 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 210,051 shares in the company, valued at $12,063,228.93. The trade was a 3.67 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Laurence C. Morse sold 13,217 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.07, for a total transaction of $780,728.19. Following the transaction, the director now owns 18,808 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,110,988.56. The trade was a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.