Patton Fund Management Inc. Takes $253,000 Position in Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

Key Points

• Patton Fund Management Inc. has acquired a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company, purchasing 3,158 shares valued at approximately $253,000 in the second quarter.
• Wells Fargo recently reported earnings of $1.54 per share for the last quarter, surpassing the consensus estimate of $1.41, with quarterly revenue slightly decreasing year-over-year.
• The company increased its quarterly dividend from $0.40 to $0.45, representing an annualized yield of 2.1% with a payout ratio of 30.82%.

Patton Fund Management Inc. bought a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 3,158 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $253,000.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 585.5% during the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 322 shares during the last quarter. Motco boosted its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 397.6% during the 1st 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 acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. 1248 Management LLC acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Stone House Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the 1st quarter valued at about $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.90% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WFC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup lifted their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Raymond James Financial downgraded Wells Fargo & Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Wells Fargo & Company from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $92.00 to $91.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Dbs Bank raised shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $82.97.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WFC opened at $85.01 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $272.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $80.84 and a 200-day moving average price of $75.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. Wells Fargo & Company has a 12 month low of $54.40 and a 12 month high of $86.65.

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

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 1st. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th were paid a $0.45 dividend. 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 2.1%. Wells Fargo & Company's payout ratio is currently 30.82%.

Wells Fargo & Company 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.

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