Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. Sells 101,560 Shares of Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

Key Points

• Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. reduced its stake in Wells Fargo by 20.6%, selling 101,560 shares and now holds a total of 391,200 shares.
• Wells Fargo recently reported earnings of $1.54 per share, exceeding estimates, and declared a dividend increase to $0.45 per share, raising its annualized dividend yield to 2.2%.
• Institutional investors own approximately 75.90% of Wells Fargo's stock, with notable increases by firms such as Massachusetts Financial Services and GAMMA Investing.

Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. trimmed its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) by 20.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 391,200 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 101,560 shares during the quarter. Wells Fargo & Company accounts for about 1.4% of Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc.'s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $28,084,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Accretive Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the first quarter worth approximately $399,000. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. increased its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 10.4% in the first quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. now owns 758,376 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $54,471,000 after acquiring an additional 71,740 shares in the last quarter. Secured Retirement Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the first quarter worth approximately $408,000. RKL Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 166.4% in the first quarter. RKL Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,185 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $588,000 after acquiring an additional 5,113 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allianz SE increased its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 22.6% in the first quarter. Allianz SE now owns 212,335 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $15,244,000 after acquiring an additional 39,150 shares in the last quarter. 75.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on WFC. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $77.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Truist Financial upped their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, TD Cowen began coverage on Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $83.00 target price on the stock. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $82.56.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Down 3.5%

NYSE:WFC traded down $2.85 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $78.98. The stock had a trading volume of 20,656,880 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,342,975. The business's 50 day moving average is $80.54 and its 200 day moving average is $75.03. Wells Fargo & Company has a fifty-two week low of $50.22 and a fifty-two week high of $84.83. The stock has a market cap of $253.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.52, a PEG ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.83.

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

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 8th were given a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 8th. This is an increase from Wells Fargo & Company's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. Wells Fargo & Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.82%.

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.