Bleakley Financial Group LLC Raises Stake in Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 12.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 94,935 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,642 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $8,848,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WFC. Navalign LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Joseph Group Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Imprint Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Cloud Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 3rd quarter worth $37,000. 75.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WFC has been the topic of several recent research reports. HSBC upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $94.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $113.00 price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $113.00 to $108.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $100.00 price objective on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Wells Fargo & Company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $97.53.

Wells Fargo & Company Price Performance

Wells Fargo & Company stock opened at $76.52 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $234.15 billion, a PE ratio of 11.81, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $78.95 and its 200 day simple moving average is $85.16. Wells Fargo & Company has a 52 week low of $71.89 and a 52 week high of $97.76.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.58 by $0.02. The company 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%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.39 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Wells Fargo & Company will post 6.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at Wells Fargo & Company

In other Wells Fargo & Company news, EVP Bridget E. Engle sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 83,478 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,270,933.80. This represents a 26.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Ellen R. Patterson sold 60,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $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 corporate insiders.

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.