Forum Financial Management LP Acquires 7,139 Shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Forum Financial Management LP grew its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) by 14.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 55,896 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 7,139 shares during the period. Forum Financial Management LP's holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $3,926,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WFC. Rialto Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Investment Counsel Co. of Nevada bought a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. BNP Paribas bought a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 126.7% in the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 424 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 237 shares in the last quarter. Finally, McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $85.00 to $83.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $82.00 to $78.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 24th. TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $83.00 price target for the company. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $92.00 to $87.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $80.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Wells Fargo & Company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $75.73.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Up 0.3%

WFC traded up $0.23 during trading on Thursday, reaching $73.96. 5,156,406 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 17,187,258. Wells Fargo & Company has a twelve month low of $50.15 and a twelve month high of $81.50. The stock has a market cap of $240.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.13. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $70.06 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $72.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.86.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $20.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.82 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 15.73% and a return on equity of 12.38%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.20 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.16%. Wells Fargo & Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.73%.

Wells Fargo & Company declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program 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 purchase up to 17.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.