Pitcairn Co. Sells 12,878 Shares of Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

Key Points

• Pitcairn Co. reduced its stake in Wells Fargo by 25.4%, selling 12,878 shares and retaining 37,920 shares valued at about $3.18 million.
• Company insiders sold heavily this quarter — including EVP Kleber Santos (25,000 shares) and EVP Bridget E. Engle (30,000 shares) — with insiders disposing of 115,000 shares worth $10.05 million in total.
• The Federal Reserve ended its 2018 enforcement order on Wells Fargo, a material regulatory positive, though the stock has shown near-term weakness while analysts maintain a "Moderate Buy" consensus (average target ~$97).

Pitcairn Co. lowered its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 25.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 37,920 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 12,878 shares during the period. Pitcairn Co.'s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $3,178,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Marquette Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Wells Fargo & Company by 472.4% during the third quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 332 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 274 shares during the last quarter. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Kilter Group LLC bought a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Main Street Group LTD increased its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 36.9% during the 3rd quarter. Main Street Group LTD now owns 438 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. 75.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about Wells Fargo & Company

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

• Positive Sentiment: Fed ends the 2018 enforcement order, removing a decade‑long regulatory constraint and reputational overhang that had limited management flexibility on capital returns and growth initiatives — a material structural positive for WFC going forward. Wells Fargo shakes off last Fed consent order Wells Fargo fully sheds Fed's 2018 enforcement order
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple outlets confirm the termination (MSN, Seeking Alpha, TMCNet), providing wide coverage but little immediate financial detail; this is a catalytic governance/regulatory development whose full capital‑allocation benefits will show up over quarters. Seeking Alpha: Fed board ends 2018 enforcement action
• Negative Sentiment: Shares slipped amid a broader market selloff tied to escalating conflict in the Middle East and higher mortgage rates (which can hurt mortgage origination volumes and bank trading sentiment); that risk‑off tone is the main reason WFC moved lower today despite the regulatory win. Yahoo Finance Market Minute: Mortgage rates tick up, Fed lifts 2018 enforcement on Wells Fargo
• Negative Sentiment: Political and crypto‑industry headlines calling out banks (social media/pundit commentary) create noise that can exacerbate short‑term sentiment swings, though they are unlikely to change fundamentals. Eric Trump attacks banks over stablecoin yields

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on WFC. Argus increased their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $94.00 to $101.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $99.00 to $99.50 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Wolfe Research reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $109.00 price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Evercore dropped their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $110.00 to $105.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $97.03.

Insider Transactions at Wells Fargo & Company

In related news, EVP Kleber Santos sold 25,000 shares of Wells Fargo & Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.72, for a total transaction of $2,193,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 79,876 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,006,722.72. This trade represents a 23.84% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Bridget E. Engle sold 30,000 shares of the business's 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 $7,270,933.80. This trade represents a 26.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 115,000 shares of company stock worth $10,050,000 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.08% of the company's stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Trading Down 2.2%

WFC stock opened at $82.07 on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company has a one year low of $58.42 and a one year high of $97.76. The stock has a market cap of $253.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $89.76 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $86.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.90.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $21.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.63 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 17.27% and a return on equity of 12.90%. The company's revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.43 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 6th were given a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 6th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Wells Fargo & Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.71%.

Wells Fargo & 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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