S Bank Fund Management Ltd Makes New $9.71 Million Investment in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Key Points

• S Bank Fund Management Ltd acquired a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company, purchasing 135,213 shares valued at approximately $9.7 million, making it the firm's 7th largest holding.
• The company reported an earnings per share (EPS) of $1.54 for the most recent quarter, exceeding analysts' estimates by $0.13, while quarterly revenue was $20.82 billion.
• Wells Fargo announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.45, with a dividend yield of 2.3%, and has authorized a $40 billion share repurchase plan.

S Bank Fund Management Ltd bought a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 135,213 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $9,707,000. Wells Fargo & Company makes up about 1.8% of S Bank Fund Management Ltd's portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest holding.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Accretive Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the first quarter worth $399,000. Secured Retirement Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the first quarter worth $408,000. RKL Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 166.4% during the first quarter. RKL Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,185 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $588,000 after purchasing an additional 5,113 shares during the last quarter. Allianz SE increased its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 22.6% in the first quarter. Allianz SE now owns 212,335 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $15,244,000 after buying an additional 39,150 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp increased its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 12.1% in the fourth quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 651,808 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $45,783,000 after buying an additional 70,104 shares in the last quarter. 75.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wells Fargo & Company Price Performance

WFC traded down $1.52 on Wednesday, reaching $77.96. 14,409,843 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 16,622,731. The stock has a market cap of $249.74 billion, a PE ratio of 13.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.20. Wells Fargo & Company has a twelve month low of $50.22 and a twelve month high of $84.83. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $79.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $74.99. 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $20.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.83 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 16.82% and a return on equity of 12.29%. Wells Fargo & Company's quarterly revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.33 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, April 29th that permits the company to buyback $40.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 17.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. This is a boost from Wells Fargo & Company's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 8th. Wells Fargo & Company's payout ratio is presently 30.82%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on WFC shares. Dbs Bank raised shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Raymond James Financial cut shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, July 7th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $80.39.

About Wells Fargo & Company

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.