Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. Acquires Shares of 37,260 Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. bought a new position in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund bought 37,260 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,079,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Godfrey Financial Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Miller Capital Partners Inc. acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Navalign LLC acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Joseph Group Capital Management bought a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Phillip James Consulting Co. bought a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. 75.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

Shares of Wells Fargo & Company stock opened at $84.82 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $86.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $82.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $256.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.33, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.92. Wells Fargo & Company has a 52 week low of $72.78 and a 52 week high of $97.76.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.73 by $0.23. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 13.85% and a net margin of 17.55%.The business had revenue of $22.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.86 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.60 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Wells Fargo & Company will post 7.26 EPS 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 $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. This is a positive change from Wells Fargo & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. Wells Fargo & Company’s payout ratio is currently 29.07%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on WFC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $98.00 to $94.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Phillip Securities upgraded Wells Fargo & Company from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Two research 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, Wells Fargo & Company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $98.61.

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.