WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) Stock Breaks Above 200 Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC)’s stock price passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Wednesday. The stock has a 200-day moving average of $37.48 and traded as high as $38.02. WesBanco shares last traded at $37.42, with a volume of 991,658 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WSBC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $44.00 price target on shares of WesBanco in a research report on Monday, September 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $42.00 target price on shares of WesBanco in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of WesBanco from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 22nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of WesBanco in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of WesBanco from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, WesBanco has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $43.20.

WesBanco Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The stock has a market cap of $3.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.07 and a beta of 0.69. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $40.56 and a 200 day moving average price of $37.51.

WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.07. WesBanco had a return on equity of 9.72% and a net margin of 23.35%.The business had revenue of $275.79 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $267.71 million. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that WesBanco, Inc. will post 3.58 EPS for the current year.

WesBanco Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 4th were paid a dividend of $0.38 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 4th. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. WesBanco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.19%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Denise H. Knouse-Snyder sold 3,070 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.89, for a total value of $125,532.30. Following the transaction, the director owned 15,035 shares in the company, valued at $614,781.15. This trade represents a 16.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Kimberly L. Griffith sold 6,875 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.20, for a total transaction of $283,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 15,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $653,349.60. This trade represents a 30.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 35,195 shares of company stock worth $1,465,800. 2.07% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On WesBanco

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Tidal Investments LLC acquired a new position in WesBanco in the second quarter valued at $621,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in shares of WesBanco in the 2nd quarter valued at about $177,000. Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in shares of WesBanco by 40.1% in the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 6,280 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $245,000 after purchasing an additional 1,799 shares during the period. Waverly Advisors LLC grew its stake in WesBanco by 21.7% during the 2nd quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 8,296 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $324,000 after buying an additional 1,480 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nykredit A S acquired a new position in WesBanco during the second quarter worth approximately $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.41% of the company’s stock.

About WesBanco

WesBanco, Inc is a financial services holding company headquartered in Wheeling, West Virginia. Through its principal subsidiary, WesBanco Bank, the company provides banking and financial services to consumers, businesses, and organizations.

WesBanco’s offerings include checking and savings accounts, consumer and residential real estate loans, commercial lending, credit cards, online and mobile banking, and other deposit and treasury management services. The company also provides trust, investment management, brokerage, and insurance services through affiliated businesses and financial professionals.

Founded in 1870, WesBanco has developed a regional banking presence serving communities in West Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, and Indiana.