Shell Asset Management Co. Decreases Position in Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

Shell Asset Management Co. reduced its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 61.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 18,225 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 28,498 shares during the quarter. Shell Asset Management Co.’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $1,528,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of WFC. Access Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Marquette Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 472.4% in the 3rd quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 332 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 274 shares during the last quarter. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Kilter Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the second quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Aventus Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the third quarter valued at about $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.90% of the company’s stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Trading Up 0.8%

Wells Fargo & Company stock opened at $86.94 on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company has a 12 month low of $58.42 and a 12 month high of $97.76. The company has a market capitalization of $272.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.09. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $91.80 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $85.93. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.10. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 12.90% and a net margin of 17.27%.The firm had revenue of $11.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.63 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.43 EPS. Wells Fargo & Company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 6th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on WFC shares. Freedom Capital downgraded Wells Fargo & Company from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 15th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $113.00 target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $92.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $94.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, HSBC reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $74.00 target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Wells Fargo & Company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $97.03.

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.