WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the seven analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $43.20.

WSBC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on WesBanco from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $42.00 target price on shares of WesBanco in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Wall Street Zen lowered WesBanco from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. DA Davidson set a $46.00 price target on shares of WesBanco in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on shares of WesBanco from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd.

WesBanco Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of WesBanco stock opened at $41.72 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. WesBanco has a 12-month low of $29.32 and a 12-month high of $42.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.13 and a beta of 0.67. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $38.82 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $36.28.

WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.85 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $275.79 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $267.71 million. WesBanco had a net margin of 23.35% and a return on equity of 9.72%. Analysts predict that WesBanco will post 3.57 EPS for the current year.

WesBanco declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, May 20th that allows the company to buyback 4,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

WesBanco Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th were given a dividend of $0.38 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. WesBanco’s payout ratio is currently 44.19%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Kimberly L. Griffith sold 6,875 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.20, for a total transaction of $283,250.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 15,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $653,349.60. This represents a 30.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jan Pattishall-Krupinski sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.71, for a total value of $165,195.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 35,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,318,770.04. The trade was a 11.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 28,625 shares of company stock valued at $1,168,982 in the last quarter. 2.07% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On WesBanco

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of WSBC. Bayview Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in WesBanco by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Bayview Asset Management LLC now owns 80,300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,669,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth Financial Services LLC grew its position in shares of WesBanco by 3.4% in the first quarter. Commonwealth Financial Services LLC now owns 10,329 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $356,000 after purchasing an additional 342 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of WesBanco by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 50,414 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,677,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV lifted its position in WesBanco by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 13,341 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $443,000 after buying an additional 390 shares in the last quarter. Finally, D.A. Davidson & CO. boosted its stake in WesBanco by 1.9% during the first quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 22,489 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $776,000 after buying an additional 424 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.41% of the company’s stock.

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.