Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) Announces Quarterly Dividend of $0.40

Webster Financial Co. (NYSE:WBS) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, April 24th, Zacks reports. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 6th will be paid a dividend of 0.40 per share by the financial services provider on Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.52%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 3rd.

Webster Financial has a payout ratio of 25.0% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Webster Financial to earn $6.36 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 25.2%.

Webster Financial Stock Performance

WBS opened at $45.48 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.81 billion, a PE ratio of 9.32, a PEG ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 1.33. Webster Financial has a twelve month low of $31.03 and a twelve month high of $53.39. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $47.94 and its 200 day moving average price is $46.49. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54.

Webster Financial (NYSE:WBS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $667.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $680.72 million. Webster Financial had a return on equity of 12.55% and a net margin of 21.09%. The business’s revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.49 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Webster Financial will post 5.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Daniel Bley sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.60, for a total value of $95,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 27,955 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,330,658. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, COO Luis Massiani sold 13,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.63, for a total value of $697,005.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 89,621 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,627,132.23. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Daniel Bley sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.60, for a total transaction of $95,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 27,955 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,330,658. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 25,975 shares of company stock worth $1,341,095 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on WBS. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $64.00 to $58.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $57.00 to $54.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Webster Financial from $51.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Webster Financial in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $60.00 price target on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Webster Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $56.23.

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.