Arete Wealth Advisors LLC Acquires New Position in WEX Inc. $WEX

Key Points

• Arete Wealth Advisors initiated a WEX position of 22,875 shares worth approximately $3.5 million. Institutional investors collectively own 97.47% of the company’s outstanding stock.
• WEX exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $5.35 in EPS and $753.5 million in revenue, up 14.2% year over year. The company also authorized a $1 billion share buyback, representing up to 21.2% of its shares.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with six Buy ratings and eight Holds; WEX has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $183.30.

Arete Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 22,875 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,501,000. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.07% of WEX as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WEX. CWM LLC lifted its stake in WEX by 377.9% in the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 17,395 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,592,000 after buying an additional 13,755 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp purchased a new position in shares of WEX during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,129,000. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. grew its position in shares of WEX by 47.5% during the fourth quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 29,207 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $4,351,000 after acquiring an additional 9,410 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of WEX by 2,115.6% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 14,667 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,185,000 after acquiring an additional 14,005 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of WEX by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 638,957 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $95,209,000 after acquiring an additional 6,971 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.47% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WEX has been the topic of several research reports. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of WEX from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Mizuho upped their target price on shares of WEX from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of WEX from $180.00 to $160.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on WEX from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut WEX from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, May 24th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, WEX presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $183.30.

WEX Stock Performance

Shares of WEX opened at $183.50 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.62, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.85. The company's fifty day moving average is $147.97 and its two-hundred day moving average is $153.15. WEX Inc. has a 1 year low of $125.29 and a 1 year high of $186.85.

WEX (NYSE:WEX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $5.35 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.08 by $0.27. WEX had a net margin of 12.56% and a return on equity of 43.19%. The company had revenue of $753.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $740.72 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.95 EPS. The business's revenue was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. WEX has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 5.450-5.650 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 19.680-20.080 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that WEX Inc. will post 17.01 earnings per share for the current year.

WEX declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, May 14th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the business services provider to buy up to 21.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at WEX

In other WEX news, COO Robert Joseph Deshaies sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.40, for a total transaction of $296,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 20,288 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,010,739.20. The trade was a 8.97% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director James R. Groch bought 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 18th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $142.95 per share, with a total value of $214,425.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 17,957 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,566,953.15. This represents a 9.11% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

WEX Company Profile

WEX Inc is a global financial technology company specializing in business payment solutions for fleet, travel, and corporate payments. The company delivers software-driven platforms and card-based services that help businesses automate payment processes, manage expenses and improve operational efficiency across a range of industries, including transportation, healthcare and government.

Founded in 1983 as Wright Express in Portland, Maine, the company began by offering fuel card services to trucking fleets.

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