Webster Financial Corporation $WBS Stock Position Reduced by Azora Capital LP

Azora Capital LP decreased its stake in Webster Financial Corporation (NYSE:WBS) by 25.0% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,415,461 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 470,924 shares during the quarter. Webster Financial makes up approximately 3.9% of Azora Capital LP’s holdings, making the stock its 6th largest position. Azora Capital LP’s holdings in Webster Financial were worth $84,135,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. California Public Employees Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Webster Financial by 9.1% during the 3rd quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 318,873 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $18,954,000 after acquiring an additional 26,481 shares in the last quarter. Boothbay Fund Management LLC acquired a new stake in Webster Financial during the third quarter valued at $4,680,000. 140 Summer Partners LP acquired a new stake in Webster Financial during the third quarter valued at $75,465,000. Algert Global LLC grew its stake in Webster Financial by 13.5% in the third quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 359,540 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $21,371,000 after purchasing an additional 42,635 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its position in Webster Financial by 7.1% in the 3rd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,591,670 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $94,609,000 after purchasing an additional 104,962 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WBS shares. Royal Bank Of Canada downgraded Webster Financial from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $75.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Raymond James Financial lowered shares of Webster Financial from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Citigroup cut shares of Webster Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $75.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $73.00 target price on shares of Webster Financial in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Webster Financial from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $74.50.

Webster Financial Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of WBS stock opened at $67.26 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $10.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.38 and a beta of 1.03. 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’s 50 day simple moving average is $68.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $62.98. Webster Financial Corporation has a twelve month low of $39.43 and a twelve month high of $74.00.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.59 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.07. Webster Financial had a return on equity of 11.10% and a net margin of 22.67%.The company had revenue of $760.48 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $731.95 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.43 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Webster Financial Corporation will post 5.88 EPS for the current year.

Webster Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 19th. Investors of record on Monday, February 9th were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. Webster Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.07%.

About Webster Financial

Webster Financial Corporation is a bank holding company headquartered in Waterbury, Connecticut. Through its principal subsidiary, Webster Bank, N.A., the company offers a broad range of banking products and financial services to individuals, small businesses, and middle-market commercial clients. Key offerings include deposit accounts, residential and commercial real estate lending, equipment finance, treasury management, and payment processing solutions.

In addition to traditional banking services, Webster Financial provides wealth management and insurance products designed to help clients plan for retirement, preserve assets, and manage risk.