Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Boosts Stock Position in Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 11.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 687,060 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 72,085 shares during the quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $56,779,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WFC. Godfrey Financial Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Miller Capital Partners Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Navalign LLC acquired a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Joseph Group Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Phillip James Consulting Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the first quarter valued at about $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on WFC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $93.50 to $95.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, June 14th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $85.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $97.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $98.61.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

Shares of Wells Fargo & Company stock opened at $87.55 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $264.75 billion, a PE ratio of 12.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. Wells Fargo & Company has a 52 week low of $72.78 and a 52 week high of $97.76. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $85.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $83.05.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $22.62 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.86 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 13.85% and a net margin of 17.55%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.60 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Wells Fargo & Company will post 7.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. This is a boost from Wells Fargo & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company’s payout ratio is 29.07%.

Wells Fargo & Company Profile

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.