Advisor Resource Council Invests $326,000 in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Advisor Resource Council acquired a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 4,536 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $326,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of WFC. Rialto Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Investment Counsel Co. of Nevada bought a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. BNP Paribas bought a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 126.7% during the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 424 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 237 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parvin Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Institutional investors own 75.90% of the company's stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

WFC opened at $77.02 on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company has a 52-week low of $50.15 and a 52-week high of $81.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. The company has a market cap of $250.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.16. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $72.70 and its 200-day moving average price is $72.88.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.16. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 16.19% and a return on equity of 12.15%. The firm had revenue of $20.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.82 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.20 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, April 29th that permits the company to buyback $40.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to reacquire up to 17.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.08%. Wells Fargo & Company's dividend payout ratio is currently 28.73%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on WFC shares. Phillip Securities raised shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "moderate buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $85.00 price target (up previously from $75.00) on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $72.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $77.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $83.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $77.98.

Wells Fargo & Company Company Profile

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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