Van Diest Capital LLC Has $1.58 Million Holdings in Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

Van Diest Capital LLC boosted its stake in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) by 142.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,914 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 11,689 shares during the quarter. Wells Fargo & Company comprises about 1.2% of Van Diest Capital LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Van Diest Capital LLC's holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $1,585,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter worth about $4,512,563,000. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. raised its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 177.7% in the 4th quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. now owns 4,876,127 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $454,455,000 after acquiring an additional 3,120,399 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 13.0% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 20,625,070 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,922,257,000 after acquiring an additional 2,369,260 shares during the period. PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab bought a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $173,651,000. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors grew its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 37,421,387 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,487,687,000 after purchasing an additional 1,760,484 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.90% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Phillip Securities raised shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "moderate buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, June 14th. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $113.00 to $108.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $98.50.

Wells Fargo & Company Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:WFC opened at $86.39 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $264.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.56, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.92. Wells Fargo & Company has a 12 month low of $72.78 and a 12 month high of $97.76. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $82.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $83.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09.

Wells Fargo & Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 8th were issued a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company's payout ratio is 26.16%.

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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