iA Global Asset Management Inc. Buys 298,696 Shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Key Points

• iA Global Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 70.2%, acquiring 298,696 shares, bringing its total to 724,163 shares valued at approximately $51.99 million.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend increase from $0.40 to $0.45 per share, reflecting confidence in its financial stability.
• Wells Fargo's recent earnings report showed an EPS of $1.54, exceeding analyst consensus estimates, with a year-over-year revenue increase of 0.6% despite a slight miss on revenue expectations.

iA Global Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) by 70.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 724,163 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 298,696 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company makes up 0.9% of iA Global Asset Management Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. iA Global Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $51,988,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of WFC. Investment Counsel Co. of Nevada acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. BNP Paribas bought a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Motco grew its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 397.6% in the first quarter. Motco now owns 408 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 326 shares during the last quarter. Accent Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the first quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Parvin Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. 75.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wells Fargo & Company Price Performance

Wells Fargo & Company stock traded down $0.59 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $77.02. 13,105,579 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,875,784. The company has a market capitalization of $246.73 billion, a PE ratio of 13.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.20. The business has a fifty day moving average of $78.86 and a 200 day moving average of $74.97. Wells Fargo & Company has a 1-year low of $50.22 and a 1-year high of $84.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06.

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

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

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This is a boost from Wells Fargo & Company's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 8th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. Wells Fargo & Company's dividend payout ratio is currently 27.40%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Dbs Bank upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Phillip Securities lowered shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $77.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Wells Fargo & Company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $80.39.

About Wells Fargo & Company

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.