Morningstar Investment Management LLC Sells 65,281 Shares of Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

Morningstar Investment Management LLC lessened its stake in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 71.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 25,674 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 65,281 shares during the quarter. Morningstar Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $2,393,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Diversified Trust Co. raised its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 59.7% during the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co. now owns 35,285 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,289,000 after acquiring an additional 13,196 shares during the period. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. bought a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the 3rd quarter valued at $147,165,000. Guerra Advisors Inc raised its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 43.2% during the 3rd quarter. Guerra Advisors Inc now owns 38,439 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,222,000 after acquiring an additional 11,594 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC raised its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 1,121.0% during the 3rd quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 24,079 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,018,000 after acquiring an additional 22,107 shares during the period. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 52.7% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 138,862 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,639,000 after acquiring an additional 47,946 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.90% of the company’s stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Up 0.2%

WFC opened at $76.52 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $78.95 and a 200-day moving average price of $85.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $234.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.90. Wells Fargo & Company has a one year low of $71.89 and a one year high of $97.76.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.58 by $0.02. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 17.26% and a return on equity of 13.27%. The company had revenue of $11.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.85 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.39 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Wells Fargo & Company will post 6.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. Wells Fargo & Company’s payout ratio is 27.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Wells Fargo & Company

In related news, EVP Bridget E. Engle sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.10, for a total value of $2,613,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 83,478 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,270,933.80. The trade was a 26.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Ellen R. Patterson sold 60,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 169,496 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,813,950.40. This trade represents a 26.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on WFC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $91.00 to $86.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Thursday, March 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $100.00 target price on the stock. HSBC upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $94.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $85.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $97.53.

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.