Hosking Partners LLP Cuts Stock Position in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Key Points

• Hosking Partners LLP sold 6,676 shares of Wells Fargo & Company, reducing its stake by 0.9%, now holding 774,258 shares valued at approximately $55.6 million, representing about 2.3% of its investment portfolio.
• Wells Fargo recently announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.45 per share from the previous $0.40, which signifies a positive trend for shareholders.
• The company's share repurchase plan authorizes repurchases of up to $40 billion, indicating management's confidence in the stock's value.

Hosking Partners LLP decreased its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) by 0.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 774,258 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 6,676 shares during the quarter. Wells Fargo & Company accounts for approximately 2.3% of Hosking Partners LLP's portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest holding. Hosking Partners LLP's holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $55,584,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Safeguard Investment Advisory Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Safeguard Investment Advisory Group LLC now owns 5,839 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $410,000 after buying an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Summit Wealth & Retirement Planning Inc. lifted its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. Summit Wealth & Retirement Planning Inc. now owns 3,362 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $241,000 after buying an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Nwam LLC lifted its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Nwam LLC now owns 8,806 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $632,000 after buying an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC now owns 22,501 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,580,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zullo Investment Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Zullo Investment Group Inc. now owns 6,327 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $454,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.90% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on WFC. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Dbs Bank upgraded Wells Fargo & Company from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $92.00 to $87.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Wells Fargo & Company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $80.39.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Up 0.9%

WFC traded up $0.73 on Friday, reaching $77.78. The company's stock had a trading volume of 14,121,735 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,890,616. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $78.92 and a two-hundred day moving average of $74.93. 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 company has a market capitalization of $249.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.20. Wells Fargo & Company has a fifty-two week low of $50.22 and a fifty-two week high of $84.83.

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

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 8th. This is an increase from Wells Fargo & Company's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Wells Fargo & Company's dividend payout ratio is currently 30.82%.

Wells Fargo & Company announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, April 29th that permits the company to repurchase $40.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 17.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's management 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.