Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. Makes New $2.62 Million Investment in WesBanco, Inc. $WSBC

Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 67,105 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,619,000.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Bayview Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of WesBanco by 0.4% during 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 lifted its stake in WesBanco by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Commonwealth Financial Services LLC now owns 10,329 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $356,000 after buying an additional 342 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in WesBanco by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 50,414 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,677,000 after buying an additional 357 shares in the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its holdings in WesBanco by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 13,341 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $443,000 after buying an additional 390 shares during the last quarter. Finally, D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its holdings in WesBanco by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 22,489 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $776,000 after buying an additional 424 shares during the last quarter. 61.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Jan Pattishall-Krupinski sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.71, for a total transaction of $165,195.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 35,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,318,770.04. This represents a 11.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Robert H. Friend sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.06, for a total value of $252,360.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 17,361 shares in the company, valued at $730,203.66. This trade represents a 25.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 36,625 shares of company stock valued at $1,505,462. 2.07% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Piper Sandler raised their price target on WesBanco from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Zacks Research raised WesBanco from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on WesBanco from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of WesBanco in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of WesBanco from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, August 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $43.20.

WesBanco Stock Down 0.0%

WSBC stock opened at $42.69 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.41 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.94. WesBanco, Inc. has a one year low of $29.57 and a one year high of $43.02. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $39.48 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $36.47.

WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.92 earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $275.79 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $267.71 million. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that WesBanco, Inc. will post 3.57 EPS for the current year.

WesBanco announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, May 20th that authorizes the company to repurchase 4,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

WesBanco Dividend Announcement

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

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.