Weaver Consulting Group Raises Position in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Weaver Consulting Group increased its stake in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 61.6% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 8,578 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,270 shares during the quarter. Weaver Consulting Group’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $497,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WFC. Fortis Group Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the third quarter worth $25,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC acquired a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Core Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. raised its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 208.0% during the 4th quarter. Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. now owns 528,104 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 356,620 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners purchased a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. 75.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

Wells Fargo & Company stock traded up $1.97 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $59.39. 31,074,465 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,610,088. The stock has a market cap of $207.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.17. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $59.55 and its 200 day moving average is $55.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.87. Wells Fargo & Company has a 52-week low of $38.38 and a 52-week high of $62.55.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.10. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 15.63% and a return on equity of 12.30%. The firm had revenue of $20.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.23 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 10th were issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 9th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.36%. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.23%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $62.00 price target (up from $56.00) on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $57.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Argus boosted their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $57.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $59.15.

About Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company, a financial services company, provides diversified banking, investment, mortgage, and consumer and commercial finance products and services in the United States and internationally. The company operates through four segments: Consumer Banking and Lending; Commercial Banking; Corporate and Investment Banking; and Wealth and Investment Management.