Martin & Co. Inc. TN Buys New Position in Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

Martin & Co. Inc. TN bought a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor bought 22,335 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,846,000.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WFC has been the topic of several research reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Friday, July 17th. UBS Group decreased their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $105.00 to $104.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $97.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $85.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Wells Fargo & Company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $98.61.

Wells Fargo & Company Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WFC opened at $84.82 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $86.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $82.79. The company has a market cap of $256.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.92. Wells Fargo & Company has a 12-month low of $72.78 and a 12-month high of $97.76. 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 (NYSE:WFC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.86 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.60 earnings per share. Wells Fargo & Company’s revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Wells Fargo & Company will post 7.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 7th. This is a boost from Wells Fargo & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio is 29.07%.

Wells Fargo & Company 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.