Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Shares Purchased by Simon Quick Advisors LLC

Simon Quick Advisors LLC raised its stake in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) by 34.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 18,485 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 4,720 shares during the period. Simon Quick Advisors LLC's holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $1,327,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter worth $3,365,658,000. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 10.7% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 34,339,295 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,411,992,000 after acquiring an additional 3,307,855 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 20,369,222 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,430,742,000 after acquiring an additional 238,131 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its position in Wells Fargo & Company by 932.0% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 15,734,874 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,105,218,000 after acquiring an additional 14,210,193 shares during the period. Finally, Capital World Investors grew its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 13,914,098 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $977,338,000 after purchasing an additional 62,099 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.90% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on WFC shares. Citigroup decreased their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $82.00 to $78.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $76.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $72.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Barclays lowered their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $92.00 to $87.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $83.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $77.68.

Wells Fargo & Company Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of NYSE WFC traded up $0.71 during trading on Monday, hitting $73.07. 16,228,673 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 17,498,630. The firm has a market capitalization of $237.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $71.65 and a 200-day moving average price of $72.85. Wells Fargo & Company has a 1 year low of $50.15 and a 1 year high of $81.50.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.16. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 12.38% and a net margin of 15.73%. The firm had revenue of $20.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $20.82 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.20 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, April 29th that allows the company to buyback $40.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase up to 17.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wells Fargo & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 9th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.19%. Wells Fargo & Company's payout ratio is 28.73%.

Wells Fargo & 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.