Tredje AP fonden Increases Position in Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

Key Points

• Tredje AP fonden increased its Wells Fargo stake by 16.4% in the fourth quarter, buying 226,671 more shares and bringing its position to 1,612,065 shares worth about $150.2 million.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on Wells Fargo, with the stock carrying a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $97.53, though some firms have trimmed targets recently.
• Wells Fargo reported quarterly EPS of $1.60, slightly ahead of estimates, and also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.45 per share, equal to a 2.4% yield.

Tredje AP fonden raised its position in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 16.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,612,065 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 226,671 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company accounts for 1.1% of Tredje AP fonden's investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest holding. Tredje AP fonden owned approximately 0.05% of Wells Fargo & Company worth $150,244,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Navalign LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Joseph Group Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Imprint Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 75.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on WFC. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $94.00 price objective (down from $100.00) on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Phillip Securities upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "moderate buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Thursday, March 26th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $100.00 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $108.00 to $100.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $97.53.

More Wells Fargo & Company News

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

• Positive Sentiment: The NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index unexpectedly rose to 37 in May, signaling a modest rebound in homebuilder confidence and supporting a more constructive outlook for mortgage and housing-related banking activity. U.S. Homebuilder Confidence Unexpectedly Rebounds In May
• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo and Lazard moved up league tables on NextEra Energy’s $67 billion acquisition of Dominion Energy, highlighting stronger investment-banking deal activity that could support fee income. Lazard, Wells Fargo Vault Up League Tables on NextEra-Dominion Deal
• Neutral Sentiment: Wells Fargo settled a lawsuit alleging hiring and lending discrimination for $110 million, including a $100 million fund for eligible borrowers in certain low- and moderate-income areas. The agreement removes uncertainty, but it also underscores continued legal and reputational risk. Wells Fargo settles lawsuit alleging hiring, lending discrimination
• Neutral Sentiment: Bloomberg Law reported that Wells Fargo’s $110 million discrimination settlement was approved, confirming the charge but reducing litigation uncertainty going forward. Wells Fargo’s $110 Million Discrimination Settlement is Approved
• Neutral Sentiment: News about Wells Fargo’s call on Disney is not directly material to WFC’s earnings outlook, though it reflects ongoing research activity from the bank’s analysts. Disney (DIS) Still Has Significant Upside Potential, Says Wells Fargo
• Negative Sentiment: Earlier market coverage noted Wells Fargo extending losses alongside Bank of America in a weak broader financials tape, suggesting some sector pressure may still be weighing on the shares. Bank of America, Wells Fargo extend losses; Japanese firms in gainers: week's financials wrap

Wells Fargo & Company Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of Wells Fargo & Company stock opened at $74.37 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $79.15 and a 200-day simple moving average of $85.54. Wells Fargo & Company has a 12-month low of $71.89 and a 12-month high of $97.76. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The stock has a market cap of $227.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.48, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.96.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.58 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $11.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $21.85 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 17.26% and a return on equity of 13.27%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.39 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Wells Fargo & Company will post 6.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 8th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. Wells Fargo & Company's dividend payout ratio is currently 27.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Kleber Santos sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 20th. The shares were 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 owned 79,876 shares in the company, valued at $7,006,722.72. This represents a 23.84% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Ellen R. Patterson sold 60,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.40, for a total transaction of $5,244,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 169,496 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,813,950.40. This represents a 26.14% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 115,000 shares of company stock worth $10,050,000 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

About Wells Fargo & Company

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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