Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Reaches New 52-Week High Following Dividend Announcement

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday following a dividend announcement from the company. The stock traded as high as $64.84 and last traded at $64.68, with a volume of 5639402 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $64.02.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.47%. Wells Fargo & Company’s payout ratio is 32.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WFC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $68.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $61.00 price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $65.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Wells Fargo & Company to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $62.00 to $59.00 in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Wells Fargo & Company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $61.82.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $226.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a 50-day moving average of $56.74 and a 200-day moving average of $58.05. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.14. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 12.30% and a net margin of 15.17%. The company had revenue of $20.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.40 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.39 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Wells Fargo & Company

In related news, EVP Beurden Saul Van sold 35,000 shares of Wells Fargo & Company stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total transaction of $2,169,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 126,687 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,853,327.13. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, EVP Beurden Saul Van sold 35,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total value of $2,169,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 126,687 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,853,327.13. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Ather Williams III sold 60,000 shares of Wells Fargo & Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.70, for a total value of $3,822,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 163,610 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,421,957. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Wells Fargo & Company

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WFC. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 4.4% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 19,848,290 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,178,591,000 after buying an additional 831,975 shares during the period. 1832 Asset Management L.P. increased its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 67.1% during the first quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 5,852,764 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $339,226,000 after buying an additional 2,349,595 shares during the period. First Pacific Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 2.1% in the second quarter. First Pacific Advisors LP now owns 5,278,666 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $313,500,000 after buying an additional 108,480 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 38.1% in the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 5,131,320 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $297,411,000 after acquiring an additional 1,415,647 shares during the period. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 1.0% during the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 4,662,953 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $270,035,000 after acquiring an additional 48,419 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.90% of the company’s stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Company Profile

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.