Wells Fargo & Company Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:WFC)

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) saw unusually large options trading on Friday. Investors purchased 82,048 put options on the company. This is an increase of 39% compared to the average daily volume of 59,215 put options.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

Shares of Wells Fargo & Company stock traded down $3.08 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $76.08. 11,679,376 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 17,040,484. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The business has a 50-day moving average of $80.47 and a 200-day moving average of $86.11. Wells Fargo & Company has a 1 year low of $71.89 and a 1 year high of $97.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $232.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.74, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.96.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.58 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $11.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.85 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 17.26% and a return on equity of 13.27%. Wells Fargo & Company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.39 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Wells Fargo & Company will post 6.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th will be given a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 8th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.78%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WFC has been the subject of a number of research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $101.00 to $98.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $94.00 price target (down from $100.00) on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $113.00 price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Freedom Capital downgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Wells Fargo & Company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $97.53.

Insider Transactions at Wells Fargo & Company

In related news, EVP Ellen R. Patterson sold 60,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.40, for a total transaction of $5,244,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 169,496 shares in the company, valued at $14,813,950.40. The trade was a 26.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kleber Santos sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.72, for a total value of $2,193,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 79,876 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,006,722.72. This trade represents a 23.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 115,000 shares of company stock valued at $10,050,000. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Wells Fargo & Company

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of WFC. Godfrey Financial Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Miller Capital Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Navalign LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Joseph Group Capital Management purchased a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Core Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. 75.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company is a diversified, U.S.-based financial services company headquartered in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1852 by Henry Wells and William G. Fargo, the firm has evolved from its origins in express delivery and pioneer-era banking into one of the largest full-service banks in the United States. The company provides a broad range of financial products and services to individual, small business, commercial, and institutional clients. Charles W. Scharf serves as chief executive officer.

Wells Fargo operates across several core business segments, including consumer banking and lending, commercial banking, corporate and investment banking, and wealth and investment management.