Haverford Trust Co Purchases New Position in Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

Key Points

• Haverford Trust Co. initiated a Wells Fargo position by purchasing 48,007 shares valued at approximately $3.97 million. Institutional investors collectively own 75.9% of WFC’s outstanding stock.
• Wells Fargo exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $1.96 in EPS and $22.62 billion in revenue, with revenue up 8.6% year over year.
• The bank raised its quarterly dividend from $0.45 to $0.50 per share, equal to a $2.00 annualized dividend and a 2.4% yield. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $98.61.

Haverford Trust Co purchased a new position in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 48,007 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,967,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $4,512,563,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,364,923,000. Deutsche Bank AG bought a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the second quarter valued at approximately $859,431,000. Pzena Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the second quarter valued at $729,502,000. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 2nd quarter valued at $620,861,000. 75.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

WFC stock opened at $84.82 on Wednesday. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $86.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $82.79. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. Wells Fargo & Company has a 12-month low of $72.78 and a 12-month high of $97.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $256.51 billion, a PE ratio of 12.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.92.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.73 by $0.23. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 13.85% and a net margin of 17.55%.The business had revenue of $22.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.86 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.60 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Wells Fargo & Company will post 7.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Friday, August 7th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 7th. This is a positive change from Wells Fargo & Company's previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. Wells Fargo & Company's dividend payout ratio is 29.07%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WFC has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Phillip Securities raised shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "moderate buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $98.00 to $94.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Raymond James Financial reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $98.61.

About Wells Fargo & Company

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.

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