Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Has $210.77 Million Stock Holdings in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC reduced its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 5.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,935,926 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 171,684 shares during the quarter. Wells Fargo & Company accounts for about 1.5% of Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC owned about 0.09% of Wells Fargo & Company worth $210,770,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. BNP Paribas bought a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Motco grew its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 397.6% during the first quarter. Motco now owns 408 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 326 shares in the last quarter. Accent Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the first quarter worth about $29,000. Parvin Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Stone House Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the first quarter worth about $34,000. 75.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on WFC. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. TD Cowen began coverage on Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. They set a "hold" rating and a $83.00 price target for the company. Wall Street Zen cut Wells Fargo & Company from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $92.00 to $91.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Phillip Securities cut Wells Fargo & Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $80.39.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

WFC opened at $79.41 on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company has a 12-month low of $50.22 and a 12-month high of $84.83. The stock has a market cap of $254.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.60, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.20. The business has a 50 day moving average of $79.20 and a 200-day moving average of $75.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $20.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $20.83 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 12.29% and a net margin of 16.82%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.33 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 8th. This is an increase from Wells Fargo & Company's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Wells Fargo & Company's payout ratio is 30.82%.

Wells Fargo & Company announced that its board has authorized a stock 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 purchase up to 17.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

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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