The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Sells 25,265 Shares of WSFS Financial Co. (NASDAQ:WSFS)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company trimmed its holdings in shares of WSFS Financial Co. (NASDAQ:WSFS) by 4.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 600,348 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 25,265 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned 1.02% of WSFS Financial worth $30,612,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of WSFS. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in shares of WSFS Financial by 27.9% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 877,467 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $41,241,000 after acquiring an additional 191,566 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in WSFS Financial by 2.9% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,903,255 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $183,450,000 after purchasing an additional 110,279 shares during the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC acquired a new position in WSFS Financial in the second quarter valued at about $3,436,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in WSFS Financial during the second quarter worth about $2,664,000. Finally, Royce & Associates LP grew its position in shares of WSFS Financial by 247.4% during the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 78,168 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,986,000 after buying an additional 55,668 shares during the period. 88.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

WSFS Financial Price Performance

NASDAQ WSFS opened at $60.02 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86. The stock has a market cap of $3.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.70 and a beta of 1.02. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $53.04 and a 200 day simple moving average of $50.52. WSFS Financial Co. has a 52-week low of $37.09 and a 52-week high of $62.75.

WSFS Financial (NASDAQ:WSFS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $267.61 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $260.35 million. WSFS Financial had a net margin of 18.78% and a return on equity of 10.56%. The firm’s revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.23 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that WSFS Financial Co. will post 4.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WSFS Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.00%. WSFS Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.70%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WSFS has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Janney Montgomery Scott reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of WSFS Financial in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $54.00 target price (down from $58.00) on shares of WSFS Financial in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $59.75.

About WSFS Financial

WSFS Financial Corporation operates as the savings and loan holding company for the Wilmington Savings Fund Society, FSB that provides various banking services in the United States. It operates through three segments: WSFS Bank, Cash Connect, and Wealth Management. It offers various deposit products, including savings accounts, demand deposits, interest-bearing demand deposits, money market deposit accounts, and certificates of deposit, as well as accepts jumbo certificates of deposit from individuals, businesses, and municipalities.