Renaissance Technologies LLC Trims Stock Position in WesBanco, Inc. $WSBC

Renaissance Technologies LLC decreased its stake in WesBanco, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSBC) by 16.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 184,047 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 36,434 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned 0.19% of WesBanco worth $6,348,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Covestor Ltd lifted its position in WesBanco by 12,500.0% in the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 756 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 750 shares during the last quarter. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of WesBanco during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. First Horizon Corp grew its holdings in shares of WesBanco by 55.4% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 1,302 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 464 shares during the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its position in shares of WesBanco by 71.9% during the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,435 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio increased its position in shares of WesBanco by 54.5% during the fourth quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 1,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. 61.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at WesBanco

In other WesBanco news, EVP Jayson M. Zatta sold 12,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.80, for a total value of $522,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 81,082 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,389,227.60. This trade represents a 13.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kimberly L. Griffith sold 6,875 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.20, for a total value of $283,250.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 15,858 shares in the company, valued at $653,349.60. This trade represents a 30.24% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 28,625 shares of company stock valued at $1,168,982. Corporate insiders own 2.07% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WSBC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings raised WesBanco from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $42.00 price target on shares of WesBanco in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on WesBanco from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. DA Davidson set a $46.00 price objective on WesBanco in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Zacks Research raised WesBanco from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.20.

WesBanco Stock Performance

Shares of WSBC opened at $42.31 on Wednesday. WesBanco, Inc. has a 1 year low of $29.23 and a 1 year high of $42.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.94. The company’s fifty day moving average is $38.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $36.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.30 and a beta of 0.67.

WesBanco (NASDAQ:WSBC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.07. The firm 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%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that WesBanco, Inc. will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current year.

WesBanco declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, May 20th that authorizes the company to repurchase 4,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

WesBanco Dividend Announcement

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

WesBanco Profile

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.