WEX (NYSE:WEX) Stock Bumped Up to Buy by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded WEX from “hold” to “buy,” though broader analyst sentiment remains cautious: five analysts rate it a Buy and eight rate it a Hold, with a consensus price target of $187.
• WEX reported quarterly EPS of $6.13, beating estimates of about $5.68, while revenue rose 12.8% year over year to $780.1 million, above expectations.
• Institutional ownership stands at 97.47%, but insiders sold approximately $6.6 million of stock over the past three months. Investors also face potential volatility from inflation, rising technology costs and fuel-price trends.

WEX (NYSE:WEX - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Evercore raised WEX to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Cantor Fitzgerald set a $178.00 target price on shares of WEX in a report on Monday, July 27th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of WEX from $172.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings raised shares of WEX from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of WEX in a report on Thursday, September 24th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $187.00.

WEX Price Performance

Shares of WEX stock opened at $184.69 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $6.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.17, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.00, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.03. The stock's fifty day moving average is $186.09 and its 200 day moving average is $164.54. WEX has a one year low of $125.29 and a one year high of $203.99.

WEX (NYSE:WEX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The business services provider reported $6.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.68 by $0.45. The business had revenue of $780.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $749.74 million. WEX had a return on equity of 45.74% and a net margin of 14.05%. WEX's revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $4.59 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that WEX will post 17.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Robert Deshaies sold 2,000 shares of WEX stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.56, for a total transaction of $347,120.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 17,288 shares in the company, valued at $3,000,505.28. This trade represents a 10.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Carlos Carriedo sold 1,075 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $186.00, for a total transaction of $199,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 11,076 shares in the company, valued at $2,060,136. This trade represents a 8.85% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 34,527 shares of company stock valued at $6,558,910 over the last three months. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of WEX

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WEX. WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new position in shares of WEX during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $4,982,000. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC bought a new stake in WEX in the second quarter worth $845,000. Corient Private Wealth LP bought a new stake in WEX in the second quarter worth $3,795,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in WEX during the second quarter worth $115,086,000. Finally, Palisade Capital Management LP purchased a new position in WEX during the second quarter worth $1,780,000. 97.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting WEX

Here are the key news stories impacting WEX this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q3 results exceeded expectations. WEX reported adjusted earnings of $6.13 per share versus the $5.67-$5.68 consensus estimate, while revenue reached $780.1 million, well above forecasts near $749.7 million. Revenue increased 12.8% year over year, supported by strong sales, margin expansion and new business wins. WEX Inc. Reports Third Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Management raised its outlook. Full-year 2026 EPS guidance of $19.68-$20.08 is above the $19.59 analyst consensus, and revenue guidance of approximately $3.0 billion exceeds the $2.9 billion estimate. Fourth-quarter EPS guidance of $5.67-$5.87 and revenue guidance of $760 million-$780 million also came in substantially ahead of consensus. WEX Inc. Raises Revenue Guidance for Full Year 2026
• Positive Sentiment: AI and shareholder returns add to the investment case. WEX is deploying artificial intelligence across its products, including a partnership with Euclid AI to develop trucking-focused AI agents. The company also said it returned most of its adjusted free cash flow through share repurchases. WEX and Euclid AI Team Up to Bring AI Agents Built for Trucking to OTR Fleets
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst sentiment has improved, with Morgan Stanley increasing its price target following the earnings update. Broader payment-industry trends—including cross-border transactions and resilient consumer spending—remain supportive for WEX and its peers. WEX Stock Gets Price Target Increase from Morgan Stanley
• Negative Sentiment: Investors still face risks from inflation and rising technology costs, while some of the quarterly upside appears linked to fuel-price trends. These factors could pressure margins or make results more volatile if operating costs rise or fuel-related benefits reverse. 5 Financial Transaction Stocks to Watch Amid Cost and Inflation Pressure

WEX Company Profile

WEX Inc NYSE: WEX is a financial technology company that provides payment-processing and business-management solutions. Its products are designed to help organizations manage corporate spending, employee benefits and mobility-related expenses through specialized payment accounts, software and data tools.

WEX's mobility business serves commercial vehicle fleets with fuel cards, fleet-payment programs, expense controls, telematics integrations and related solutions. The company also supports emerging mobility needs, including electric-vehicle charging payments.

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