O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Lowers Stake in Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

Key Points

• O Shaughnessy Asset Management cut its Wells Fargo stake by 16.3% in the fourth quarter, selling 270,616 shares and leaving it with 1,386,920 shares valued at about $129.3 million.
• Despite that sale, institutional ownership remains high, with hedge funds and other investors holding 75.9% of Wells Fargo’s shares. Several firms recently increased their positions, including Brighton Jones LLC and Main Street Financial Solutions LLC.
• Analysts are generally positive on Wells Fargo, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average target price of $97.53. The stock also recently beat quarterly EPS expectations, and the bank paid a $0.45 quarterly dividend, yielding about 2.2% annualized.

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lessened its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 16.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,386,920 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 270,616 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company makes up approximately 0.7% of O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC's holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $129,261,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 62.3% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 66,233 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,652,000 after purchasing an additional 25,436 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC lifted its position in Wells Fargo & Company by 12.9% in the second quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 22,904 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,835,000 after acquiring an additional 2,615 shares during the last quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC lifted its position in Wells Fargo & Company by 111.0% in the second quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 14,008 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,122,000 after acquiring an additional 7,368 shares during the last quarter. Vivaldi Capital Management LP raised its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 5.4% in the second quarter. Vivaldi Capital Management LP now owns 3,229 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $259,000 after buying an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 51.2% in the second quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 25,718 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,044,000 after buying an additional 8,714 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.90% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WFC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and set a $94.00 target price (down from $100.00) on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $91.00 to $86.50 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $109.00 to $93.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. They set a "buy" rating and a $100.00 target price on the stock. Two research 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 company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Wells Fargo & Company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $97.53.

More Wells Fargo & Company News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain constructive on Wells Fargo after management offered a strong outlook, with coverage showing a majority Buy rating and implied upside to the shares. Street Bullish on Wells Fargo & Company (WFC) After CEO Offered Strong Outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo is also part of a planned shared tokenized deposit network led by The Clearing House, suggesting the bank is positioning itself for faster, blockchain-based payments and a new growth avenue. Big Banks Launch Tokenized Deposit Network to Fight Off Stablecoin Threat
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage noting that Wells Fargo is a trending stock points to heightened investor attention, but it does not add new fundamentals by itself. Is Trending Stock Wells Fargo & Company (WFC) a Buy Now?
• Neutral Sentiment: Wells Fargo’s role in the tokenized-deposit network was reiterated in separate reports, reinforcing the strategic theme rather than signaling an immediate financial impact. Tokenized Deposits Set Up Banking’s Next Network Race

Wells Fargo & Company Price Performance

WFC opened at $82.06 on Monday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $79.20 and a 200 day simple moving average of $84.71. The firm has a market cap of $251.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.66, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.93. Wells Fargo & Company has a twelve month low of $71.93 and a twelve month high of $97.76. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.58 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $11.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.85 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 17.26% and a return on equity of 13.27%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.39 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Wells Fargo & Company will post 6.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th were given a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Wells Fargo & Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.78%.

Wells Fargo & Company Company Profile

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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