Griffith & Werner Inc. Takes $2.38 Million Position in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Griffith & Werner Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 33,847 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,377,000. Wells Fargo & Company comprises about 1.6% of Griffith & Werner Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of WFC. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter worth about $3,365,658,000. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 932.0% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 15,734,874 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,105,218,000 after buying an additional 14,210,193 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 10.7% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 34,339,295 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,411,992,000 after buying an additional 3,307,855 shares during the last quarter. Theleme Partners LLP purchased a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $187,049,000. Finally, Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI purchased a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $117,280,000. Institutional investors own 75.90% of the company's stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

NYSE:WFC traded down $0.26 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $73.73. The company had a trading volume of 8,698,413 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,430,231. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. Wells Fargo & Company has a 52 week low of $50.15 and a 52 week high of $81.50. The firm has a market cap of $239.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.70, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.13. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $70.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $72.87.

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

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The business 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 $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. Wells Fargo & Company's payout ratio is currently 28.73%.

Wells Fargo & Company announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, April 29th that allows the company to buyback $40.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 17.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on WFC shares. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $82.00 to $78.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 24th. Raymond James reduced their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $88.00 to $78.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $92.00 to $87.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $82.00 to $73.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Seven 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Wells Fargo & Company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $75.73.

Wells Fargo & Company 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.