1,669,710 Shares in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Acquired by Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI

Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI purchased a new position in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 1,669,710 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $117,280,000. Wells Fargo & Company accounts for about 1.0% of Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI's investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI owned approximately 0.05% of Wells Fargo & Company at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,365,658,000. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 10.7% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 34,339,295 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,411,992,000 after purchasing an additional 3,307,855 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 20,369,222 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,430,742,000 after purchasing an additional 238,131 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 932.0% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 15,734,874 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,105,218,000 after purchasing an additional 14,210,193 shares during the period. Finally, Capital World Investors raised its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 13,914,098 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $977,338,000 after acquiring an additional 62,099 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.90% of the company's stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:WFC opened at $76.05 on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company has a 52-week low of $50.15 and a 52-week high of $81.50. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $69.74 and a 200 day moving average of $72.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $247.48 billion, a PE ratio of 14.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.86.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.16. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 15.73% and a return on equity of 12.38%. The company had revenue of $20.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.82 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.20 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, April 29th that allows the company to buyback $40.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 17.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th will be given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.10%. Wells Fargo & Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.73%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WFC has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Truist Financial lowered their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $84.00 to $73.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $85.00 to $83.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Phillip Securities raised shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "moderate buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 14th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $92.00 to $87.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $75.73.

About Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Co is a diversified and community-based financial services company, which engages in the provision of banking, insurance, investments, mortgage, and consumer and commercial finance products and services. It operates through the following segments: Consumer Banking and Lending, Commercial Banking, Corporate and Investment Banking, and Wealth and Investment Management.

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