WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC) Shares Acquired by Moody National Bank Trust Division

Moody National Bank Trust Division increased its holdings in shares of WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC) by 33.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 29,872 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,405 shares during the quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division’s holdings in WesBanco were worth $972,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Hilltop National Bank lifted its position in shares of WesBanco by 19.6% during the 4th quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 2,518 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $82,000 after buying an additional 413 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC lifted its position in WesBanco by 4.6% in the second quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 12,630 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $353,000 after acquiring an additional 560 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its position in WesBanco by 3.9% in the third quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 17,590 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $524,000 after acquiring an additional 668 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its stake in WesBanco by 3.0% in the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 30,049 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $895,000 after acquiring an additional 867 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP grew its holdings in shares of WesBanco by 215.3% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,337 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 913 shares during the last quarter. 61.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

WesBanco Stock Performance

Shares of WSBC stock opened at $30.52 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $34.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $31.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.04 billion, a PE ratio of 14.60 and a beta of 0.85. WesBanco, Inc. has a 52-week low of $25.56 and a 52-week high of $37.36.

WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.03. WesBanco had a return on equity of 5.75% and a net margin of 14.79%. The business had revenue of $243.34 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $152.40 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.59 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that WesBanco, Inc. will post 2.14 EPS for the current year.

WesBanco Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. This is a boost from WesBanco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. WesBanco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 70.81%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on WSBC. Raymond James raised WesBanco from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $35.00 to $44.00 in a report on Friday, December 6th. Stephens boosted their price objective on WesBanco from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $37.83.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Michael L. Perkins sold 1,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.87, for a total value of $39,228.75. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 46,817 shares in the company, valued at $1,632,508.79. This trade represents a 2.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 3.44% of the company’s stock.

About WesBanco

WesBanco, Inc operates as the bank holding company for WesBanco Bank, Inc that provides retail banking, corporate banking, personal and corporate trust, brokerage, mortgage banking, and insurance services to individuals and businesses in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Community Banking, and Trust and Investment Services.