Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) Price Target Cut to $55.00

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) had its price target lowered by equities researchers at Citigroup from $60.00 to $55.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Citigroup’s target price indicates a potential upside of 20.93% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also recently weighed in on WBS. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Webster Financial in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $60.00 price objective on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $64.00 to $58.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $65.00 to $56.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $70.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $51.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $56.23.

Webster Financial Stock Performance

NYSE WBS opened at $45.48 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $7.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.30, a PEG ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 1.33. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $47.94 and its 200 day simple moving average is $46.49. Webster Financial has a twelve month low of $31.03 and a twelve month high of $53.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $667.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $680.72 million. Webster Financial had a net margin of 21.09% and a return on equity of 12.55%. The business’s revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.49 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Webster Financial will post 5.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Webster Financial

In other Webster Financial news, COO Luis Massiani sold 13,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.63, for a total value of $697,005.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 89,621 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,627,132.23. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Daniel Bley sold 2,000 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.60, for a total transaction of $95,200.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 27,955 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,330,658. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Luis Massiani sold 13,500 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.63, for a total transaction of $697,005.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 89,621 shares in the company, valued at $4,627,132.23. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 25,975 shares of company stock valued at $1,341,095. 0.72% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Webster Financial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of Webster Financial by 22.6% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,258,411 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $292,587,000 after purchasing an additional 1,339,862 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Webster Financial by 12.3% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,916,013 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $198,785,000 after purchasing an additional 430,331 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of Webster Financial by 1.8% during the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,732,942 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $110,165,000 after purchasing an additional 48,445 shares in the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Webster Financial by 8.4% during the third quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 2,394,951 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $96,540,000 after purchasing an additional 184,905 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Davis Asset Management L.P. boosted its position in shares of Webster Financial by 14.3% during the fourth quarter. Davis Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,000,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $101,520,000 after purchasing an additional 250,000 shares in the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.