Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Position Boosted by Providence Capital Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Providence Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in Wells Fargo by 50.6% in Q1, owning 14,361 shares valued at approximately $1,031,000.
• The company's quarterly dividend has been increased from $0.40 to $0.45, with an annualized yield of 2.3% set for payment on September 1st.
• Wells Fargo's stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $80.39 following multiple ratings adjustments from analysts.

Providence Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) by 50.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 14,361 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 4,823 shares during the period. Providence Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $1,031,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. BNP Paribas purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Motco raised its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 397.6% during the 1st quarter. Motco now owns 408 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 326 shares in the last quarter. Accent Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. Parvin Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Stone House Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. 75.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WFC shares. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $92.00 to $91.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Evercore ISI reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Bank of America upped their price target 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. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $77.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Finally, Phillip Securities downgraded Wells Fargo & Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $80.39.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Up 1.9%

NYSE WFC opened at $79.41 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.84. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $79.20 and a 200 day simple moving average of $75.00. Wells Fargo & Company has a twelve month low of $50.22 and a twelve month high of $84.83. The stock has a market cap of $254.37 billion, a PE ratio of 13.60, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.20.

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

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 8th. This is an increase from Wells Fargo & Company's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. Wells Fargo & Company's payout ratio is presently 30.82%.

Wells Fargo & Company announced that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, April 29th that allows the company to repurchase $40.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to buy up to 17.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.

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