Voya Investment Management LLC Has $1.15 Million Stock Holdings in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS)

Voya Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) by 6.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 20,730 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,475 shares during the quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Webster Financial were worth $1,145,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in WBS. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ bought a new stake in shares of Webster Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Webster Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in Webster Financial during the 4th quarter worth about $43,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in shares of Webster Financial by 88.1% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,119 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $62,000 after acquiring an additional 524 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Webster Financial by 742.7% in the 4th quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 1,264 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $70,000 after purchasing an additional 1,114 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Webster Financial Trading Down 0.5 %

NYSE WBS opened at $49.48 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $48.52 and its 200-day moving average is $54.38. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $8.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.32, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.98. 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 earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.38 by ($0.08). Webster Financial had a net margin of 18.39% and a return on equity of 10.82%. The company had revenue of $704.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $708.46 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.35 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Webster Financial Co. will post 5.88 EPS for the current year.

Webster Financial announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, May 1st that allows the company to buyback $700.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire up to 8.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 12th. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.04%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Webster Financial

In related news, Director Laurence C. Morse sold 13,217 shares of Webster Financial stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.07, for a total value of $780,728.19. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 18,808 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,110,988.56. This trade represents a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Daniel Bley sold 1,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.84, for a total transaction of $86,112.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 21,517 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,029,373.28. This trade represents a 7.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 23,017 shares of company stock worth $1,326,280 over the last ninety days. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WBS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Raymond James decreased their target price on Webster Financial from $65.00 to $58.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com raised shares of Webster Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 11th. Royal Bank of Canada set a $60.00 price target on shares of Webster Financial and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Webster Financial from $75.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $62.73.

Webster Financial Company Profile

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.