WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC) Receives $39.50 Average Target Price from Brokerages

WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC) has received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $39.50.

Several analysts have weighed in on WSBC shares. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $41.00 target price on shares of WesBanco in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Raymond James Financial reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $41.00 target price on shares of WesBanco in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of WesBanco from $42.00 to $40.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Zacks Research lowered shares of WesBanco from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of WesBanco from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Louis Michael Altman acquired 3,000 shares of WesBanco stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $33.72 per share, with a total value of $101,160.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 33,164 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,118,290.08. This trade represents a 9.95% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph R. Robinson bought 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 27th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $34.54 per share, for a total transaction of $34,540.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 19,068 shares in the company, valued at $658,608.72. This trade represents a 5.53% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders purchased 7,000 shares of company stock valued at $236,500 over the last 90 days. 2.07% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On WesBanco

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of WesBanco by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,819,476 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $326,399,000 after acquiring an additional 224,107 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of WesBanco by 1.1% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,451,344 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $188,013,000 after acquiring an additional 59,077 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of WesBanco by 0.4% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,663,315 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $117,109,000 after acquiring an additional 14,147 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in shares of WesBanco by 13.7% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,764,222 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $91,883,000 after acquiring an additional 332,585 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of WesBanco by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,356,011 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $78,325,000 after acquiring an additional 15,673 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.41% of the company’s stock.

WesBanco Stock Performance

NASDAQ WSBC opened at $36.29 on Monday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $34.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $34.74. WesBanco has a 52 week low of $29.18 and a 52 week high of $38.10. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a market cap of $3.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.71 and a beta of 0.68.

WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.86 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $257.23 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $264.52 million. WesBanco had a net margin of 21.12% and a return on equity of 9.76%. The business’s revenue was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.66 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that WesBanco will post 3.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

WesBanco Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th will be issued a $0.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.2%. WesBanco’s dividend payout ratio is presently 49.03%.

WesBanco announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, May 20th that authorizes the company to repurchase 4,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

About WesBanco

WesBanco, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Wheeling, West Virginia, offering a full range of community banking services through its principal subsidiary, WesBanco Bank, Inc The company serves individual consumers, small? to mid?sized businesses, nonprofit organizations and governmental entities with a relationship?driven approach and an emphasis on local decision?making. Through its diversified platform, WesBanco provides core banking functions such as deposit accounts, commercial and consumer lending, mortgage banking, treasury management and electronic banking services.

In addition to traditional banking products, WesBanco offers specialized services including trust and wealth management, investment advisory and insurance solutions.