WesBanco assumed with an Overweight at Piper Sandler

Piper Sandler assumed coverage of WesBanco (WSBC) with an Overweight rating and $37 price target The firm notes WesBanco’s shares are currently trading at 9.1-turns and 7.5-turns its 2025 and 2026 EPS estimates, respectively, while peers are at 10.2-turns and 8.8-turns. Piper attributes much of this discount to integration risk for the Premier Financial acquisition. While there is certainly integration risk with acquisitions of this size, the firm thinks this concern is already priced into the shares. Moreover, benefiting from the scale the Premier deal provides as well as the anticipated cost saves, Piper forecasts the ROA to be in the 1.20%-1.40% range and the ROTCE to be in the mid- to high-teens. The firm believes this strong earnings power should support an in-line valuation in the near-term and eventually expects the shares to return to their historical premium.