Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Position Boosted by Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV

Key Points

• Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV increased its holdings in Wells Fargo by 220.2%, owning 13,317 shares valued at $956,000 after purchasing an additional 9,158 shares in the first quarter.
• Wells Fargo's quarterly EPS was reported at $1.54, exceeding estimates, and the company announced a dividend increase to $0.45 per share, with plans for a $40 billion stock buyback.
• Analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for Wells Fargo, with an average price target of $81.58, following recent adjustments in price objectives from several research firms.

Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV raised its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 220.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 13,317 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 9,158 shares during the quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV's holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $956,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WFC. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake 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 valued at $1,105,218,000 after purchasing an additional 14,210,193 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 277.4% during the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 10,740,934 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $771,092,000 after purchasing an additional 7,894,919 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 7,887.9% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,393,083 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $243,589,000 after purchasing an additional 3,350,605 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted 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 purchasing an additional 3,307,855 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter valued at $198,801,000. 75.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wells Fargo & Company Price Performance

WFC opened at $77.09 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. Wells Fargo & Company has a 12-month low of $50.22 and a 12-month high of $84.83. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $79.21 and a 200-day moving average of $74.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $246.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.20, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.20.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.13. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 12.29% and a net margin of 16.82%. The business had revenue of $20.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.83 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.33 earnings per share. Wells Fargo & Company's quarterly revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WFC has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Evercore ISI reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $92.00 to $91.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. TD Cowen initiated coverage on Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. They set a "hold" rating and a $83.00 price objective for the company. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $81.58.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding WFC? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.