Optimize Financial Inc Invests $389,000 in WEX Inc. $WEX

Key Points

• Optimize Financial Inc acquired a new stake in WEX Inc. during the first quarter, purchasing 2,479 shares valued at approximately $389,000.
• Notable institutional investors have significantly increased their holdings in WEX, with Hsbc Holdings PLC boosting its stake by 20,412.8% in the same quarter.
• WEX stock currently has a market capitalization of $5.91 billion and a consensus rating of "Hold" from analysts, with an average price target of $179.82.

Optimize Financial Inc bought a new stake in shares of WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 2,479 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $389,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new stake in WEX in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in shares of WEX in the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in WEX by 161.5% during the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 272 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP acquired a new position in WEX during the 1st quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, SVB Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of WEX in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Institutional investors own 97.47% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Ann Elena Drew sold 1,931 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.69, for a total value of $331,533.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 7,295 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,252,478.55. The trade was a 20.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Carlos Carriedo sold 875 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.68, for a total value of $150,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 5,270 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $904,753.60. This trade represents a 14.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on WEX shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of WEX in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $150.00 target price for the company. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of WEX from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of WEX from $138.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of WEX from $150.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of WEX from $186.00 to $198.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $179.82.

WEX Price Performance

WEX stock traded up $1.04 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $170.77. 117,626 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 660,764. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $166.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $149.22. The stock has a market cap of $5.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.59, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.31. WEX Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $110.45 and a fifty-two week high of $217.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.99, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04.

About WEX

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.