Versant Capital Management Inc Boosts Stake in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) by 84.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,189 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 4,200 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc's holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $660,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WFC. Rialto Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Investment Counsel Co. of Nevada bought a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. BNP Paribas bought a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. increased its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 126.7% during the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 424 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 237 shares in the last quarter. 75.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on WFC shares. Raymond James decreased their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $88.00 to $78.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $85.00 to $83.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $82.00 to $78.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $80.00 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Phillip Securities upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "moderate buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $75.73.

Wells Fargo & Company Price Performance

Wells Fargo & Company stock traded up $0.11 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $74.62. The stock had a trading volume of 17,037,870 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,441,691. The firm has a market capitalization of $242.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.13. Wells Fargo & Company has a one year low of $50.15 and a one year high of $81.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The firm's 50 day moving average is $70.07 and its 200 day moving average is $72.90.

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

Wells Fargo & Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 9th. Wells Fargo & Company's payout ratio is currently 28.73%.

Wells Fargo & Company announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, April 29th that authorizes the company to repurchase $40.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to reacquire up to 17.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.