Legal & General Group Plc Has $1.98 Billion Holdings in Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

Key Points

• Legal & General Group Plc increased its Wells Fargo stake by 0.9% in the fourth quarter, holding about 21.2 million shares valued at roughly $1.98 billion.
• Wells Fargo has been drawing attention for positive operational developments, including the launch of Advisor Gateway and ongoing cost-cutting efforts that analysts say could help it reach its 17%–18% ROTCE target.
• The bank reported better-than-expected EPS of $1.60 last quarter and continues to pay a quarterly dividend of $0.45, while Wall Street maintains a Moderate Buy consensus with an average price target of $97.53.

Legal & General Group Plc raised its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) by 0.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 21,197,423 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 188,186 shares during the quarter. Legal & General Group Plc owned approximately 0.68% of Wells Fargo & Company worth $1,975,600,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Navalign LLC acquired a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Joseph Group Capital Management acquired a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Imprint Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Cloud Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.90% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Wells Fargo & Company

Here are the key news stories impacting Wells Fargo & Company this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo launched Advisor Gateway, a new desktop platform for financial advisors that gives access to more than 200 tools and applications. Investors may see this as a sign the bank is investing in technology and advisor productivity, which could support fee growth and client retention. Wells Fargo & Company (WFC) Launches Advisor Gateway, Here’s What You Need to Know
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentary continue to frame WFC as undervalued, with cost cuts and efficiency improvements potentially helping the bank reach its 17%–18% ROTCE target. That supports the case for earnings leverage if management executes well. WFC's Efficiency Story: Will Cost Cuts Lift ROTCE to Its Target Level?
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street reaction to the recent $110 million discrimination settlement has been relatively muted to constructive, with commentary noting a buy-skewed analyst consensus and insider buying. That suggests investors may be looking past the legal overhang. Wall Street’s Verdict on Wells Fargo After the $110 Million Discrimination Settlement
• Neutral Sentiment: One article on Wells Fargo’s revised price target for Alphabet is only indirectly relevant to WFC and does not appear to be a direct driver of the stock today.
• Neutral Sentiment: Several repeat items discuss the same Advisor Gateway launch and efficiency/cost-cutting story, reinforcing the same theme rather than adding a new catalyst.

Insider Buying and Selling at Wells Fargo & Company

In related news, EVP Bridget E. Engle sold 30,000 shares of Wells Fargo & Company stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.10, for a total value of $2,613,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 83,478 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,270,933.80. This trade represents a 26.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Ellen R. Patterson sold 60,000 shares of Wells Fargo & Company stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.40, for a total transaction of $5,244,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 169,496 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,813,950.40. The trade was a 26.14% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

Shares of WFC stock opened at $76.52 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $78.92 and a 200-day moving average of $85.24. Wells Fargo & Company has a 52 week low of $71.89 and a 52 week high of $97.76. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The company has a market cap of $234.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.96.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.58 by $0.02. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 17.26% and a return on equity of 13.27%. The business had revenue of $11.62 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.85 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.39 EPS. Wells Fargo & Company's revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Wells Fargo & Company will post 6.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th will be given a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 8th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. Wells Fargo & Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WFC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. HSBC raised shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $94.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $101.00 to $98.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Monday, April 20th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $113.00 price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $109.00 to $93.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $97.53.

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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