Firetrail Investments PTY Ltd. Sells 15,382 Shares of Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

Key Points

• Firetrail Investments PTY Ltd. cut its Wells Fargo stake by 26.6% in the fourth quarter, selling 15,382 shares and leaving it with 42,413 shares worth about $3.97 million.
• Wells Fargo’s stock has drawn mixed signals: analysts recently issued upgrades and reiterated buy ratings, but there was also notable put buying and several insider sales totaling 115,000 shares over the last 90 days.
• The bank reported solid quarterly results and a dividend, with earnings of $1.60 per share topping estimates, revenue up 6.4% year over year, and a quarterly dividend of $0.45 per share yielding about 2.4%.

Firetrail Investments PTY Ltd. trimmed its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) by 26.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 42,413 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 15,382 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company comprises 1.3% of Firetrail Investments PTY Ltd.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position. Firetrail Investments PTY Ltd.'s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $3,972,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Private Wealth Group LLC grew its position in Wells Fargo & Company by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 4,514 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $421,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 12,048 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,123,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. Main Street Group LTD boosted its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 36.9% in the 3rd quarter. Main Street Group LTD now owns 438 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. D Orazio & Associates Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. D Orazio & Associates Inc. now owns 3,436 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $288,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stonebrook Private Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Stonebrook Private Inc. now owns 4,511 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $378,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.90% of the company's stock.

Trending Headlines about Wells Fargo & Company

Here are the key news stories impacting Wells Fargo & Company this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Phillip Securities upgraded Wells Fargo & Company (WFC) from “moderate buy” to “strong-buy,” reinforcing the view that the bank’s turnaround and earnings strength still have room to run.
• Positive Sentiment: Market commentary noted that Wells Fargo’s comeback looks real, supported by accelerating loan growth, rising shareholder returns, and stronger customer activity, which could help sustain investor confidence. Wells Fargo’s Comeback Is Real—But Not Risk-Free
• Positive Sentiment: Additional article coverage framed WFC as a potentially attractive dividend stock, which may appeal to income-focused investors looking for a large-cap financial name with improving fundamentals. Wells Fargo (WFC) Could Be a Great Choice
• Neutral Sentiment: There was also heavy put option activity in Wells Fargo, with traders buying 82,048 puts versus a typical volume of 59,215, suggesting some hedging or bearish positioning despite the recent positive coverage.
• Neutral Sentiment: Separately, Wells Fargo has been active on the research side across other stocks, including a downgrade of Nike and higher price targets on Arm Holdings, but those calls are not direct catalysts for WFC shares.

Insider Activity at Wells Fargo & Company

In related news, EVP Ellen R. Patterson sold 60,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.40, for a total transaction of $5,244,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 169,496 shares in the company, valued at $14,813,950.40. The trade was a 26.14% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Bridget E. Engle sold 30,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.10, for a total value of $2,613,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 83,478 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,270,933.80. The trade was a 26.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 115,000 shares of company stock worth $10,050,000 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on WFC shares. HSBC upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $94.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. Freedom Capital cut Wells Fargo & Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. KGI Securities downgraded Wells Fargo & Company to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, UBS Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $113.00 target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Wells Fargo & Company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $97.53.

Wells Fargo & Company Trading Down 4.5%

Shares of WFC opened at $75.57 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $231.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.66, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $80.47 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $86.11. Wells Fargo & Company has a twelve month low of $71.89 and a twelve month high of $97.76.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.58 by $0.02. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 17.26% and a return on equity of 13.27%. The business had revenue of $11.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.85 billion. The company's revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.39 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Wells Fargo & Company will post 6.82 EPS for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 8th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Wells Fargo & Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.78%.

Wells Fargo & Company Profile

Wells Fargo & Company is a diversified, U.S.-based financial services company headquartered in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1852 by Henry Wells and William G. Fargo, the firm has evolved from its origins in express delivery and pioneer-era banking into one of the largest full-service banks in the United States. The company provides a broad range of financial products and services to individual, small business, commercial, and institutional clients. Charles W. Scharf serves as chief executive officer.

Wells Fargo operates across several core business segments, including consumer banking and lending, commercial banking, corporate and investment banking, and wealth and investment management.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.