Capital Investment Counsel Inc Lowers Stock Holdings in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Capital Investment Counsel Inc reduced its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 48,161 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,101 shares during the period. Capital Investment Counsel Inc’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $2,721,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Ellenbecker Investment Group lifted its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 3.9% in the third quarter. Ellenbecker Investment Group now owns 4,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $250,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Income Research & Management acquired a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the 3rd quarter worth $211,000. John W. Brooker & Co. CPAs grew its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 2.5% during the second quarter. John W. Brooker & Co. CPAs now owns 7,075 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $420,000 after buying an additional 171 shares in the last quarter. McAdam LLC raised its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 3.3% in the second quarter. McAdam LLC now owns 5,609 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $333,000 after buying an additional 178 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eclectic Associates Inc. ADV lifted its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 1.2% in the third quarter. Eclectic Associates Inc. ADV now owns 15,452 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $873,000 after buying an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. 75.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wolfe Research raised shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $65.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Wells Fargo & Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $65.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Wells Fargo & Company to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $62.00 to $59.00 in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Phillip Securities raised shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “neutral” rating to an “accumulate” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $60.83 to $65.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Thirteen 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $61.82.

Wells Fargo & Company Price Performance

Wells Fargo & Company stock opened at $64.56 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. Wells Fargo & Company has a 52-week low of $38.58 and a 52-week high of $65.21. The firm has a market cap of $225.08 billion, a PE ratio of 13.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.16. The company’s 50 day moving average is $57.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $58.15.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $20.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.40 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.39 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.48%. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.85%.

Insider Activity

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