Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Has $29.13 Million Stock Holdings in Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

Key Points

• Epoch Investment Partners Inc. increased its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 31% in Q1, bringing its total shares owned to 405,781, valued at approximately $29.13 million.
• Wells Fargo recently announced a quarterly dividend increase from $0.40 to $0.45, signaling a growing confidence in its financial outlook.
• The company reported earnings of $1.54 per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.41, with a year-over-year revenue growth of 0.6%.

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 31.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 405,781 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 95,912 shares during the period. Epoch Investment Partners Inc.'s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $29,131,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WFC. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 277.4% during the first quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 10,740,934 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $771,092,000 after purchasing an additional 7,894,919 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 7,887.9% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,393,083 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $243,589,000 after purchasing an additional 3,350,605 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter worth approximately $198,801,000. Theleme Partners LLP acquired a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter worth approximately $187,049,000. Finally, Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI acquired a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter worth approximately $117,280,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.90% of the company's stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Up 1.7%

WFC stock opened at $81.55 on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company has a twelve month low of $50.22 and a twelve month high of $84.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. The stock's 50 day moving average is $79.87 and its 200-day moving average is $74.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $261.23 billion, a PE ratio of 13.96, a P/E/G ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.20.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.13. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 12.29% and a net margin of 16.82%.The company had revenue of $20.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.83 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.33 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, April 29th that authorizes the company to repurchase $40.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to reacquire up to 17.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 8th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. This is a boost from Wells Fargo & Company's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 8th. Wells Fargo & Company's dividend payout ratio is 30.82%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WFC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Dbs Bank raised Wells Fargo & Company from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $77.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. TD Cowen began coverage on Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $83.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Raymond James Financial cut Wells Fargo & Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $81.58.

Wells Fargo & 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding WFC? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.