Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC Has $59.95 Million Stake in WEX Inc. $WEX

Key Points

• Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC increased its stake in WEX Inc. by 79.5%, owning 381,767 shares valued at approximately $59.95 million.
• WEX has seen a rise in analyst price targets, with Mizuho raising their target from $150 to $185 and Robert W. Baird raising it from $186 to $198, indicating a generally optimistic outlook.
• Insider trading activity revealed that CEO Melissa D. Smith bought 3,721 shares valued at $500,734.97, raising her ownership of the stock by 3.82%.

Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX - Free Report) by 79.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 381,767 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 169,137 shares during the quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC owned approximately 1.11% of WEX worth $59,945,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WEX. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its position in WEX by 20,412.8% in the 1st quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 638,563 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $99,069,000 after buying an additional 635,450 shares in the last quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. lifted its position in WEX by 1,684.2% in the 4th quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 201,922 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $35,401,000 after buying an additional 190,605 shares in the last quarter. Ariel Investments LLC lifted its position in WEX by 113.0% in the 4th quarter. Ariel Investments LLC now owns 318,272 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $55,799,000 after buying an additional 168,832 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in WEX by 5,562.2% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 151,125 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $26,117,000 after buying an additional 148,456 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in WEX in the 1st quarter worth approximately $18,783,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.47% of the company's stock.

WEX Stock Performance

WEX traded up $2.04 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $173.33. The stock had a trading volume of 326,445 shares, compared to its average volume of 687,859. The firm has a market cap of $5.94 billion, a PE ratio of 21.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.28. WEX Inc. has a 12 month low of $110.45 and a 12 month high of $217.47. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.99. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $160.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $147.74.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WEX has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of WEX from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of WEX from $138.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of WEX from $142.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of WEX from $186.00 to $198.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of WEX from $135.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $179.82.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Melissa D. Smith bought 3,721 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 29th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $134.57 per share, for a total transaction of $500,734.97. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 101,182 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,616,061.74. The trade was a 3.82% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Ann Elena Drew sold 1,931 shares of WEX stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.69, for a total transaction of $331,533.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 7,295 shares in the company, valued at $1,252,478.55. This trade represents a 20.93% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 4,206 shares of company stock worth $665,265. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

WEX Profile

WEX Inc operates a commerce platform in the United States and internationally. The Mobility segment offers fleet vehicle payment solutions, transaction processing, and information management services; and provides account activation and account retention services; authorization and billing inquiries, and account maintenance services; account management; credit and collections services; merchant services; analytics solutions; and ancillary services and offerings.