Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. Has $2.66 Million Holdings in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Key Points

• Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Wells Fargo by 109.0% in Q1, owning 37,064 shares worth approximately $2.66 million after purchasing an additional 19,333 shares.
• The board of Wells Fargo authorized a $40 billion share buyback program, allowing the repurchase of up to 17.2% of its shares, indicating a belief that the shares are undervalued.
• Wells Fargo recently raised its quarterly dividend from $0.40 to $0.45 per share, with the ex-dividend date set for August 8th, reflecting an annualized yield of 2.20%.

Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) by 109.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 37,064 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 19,333 shares during the quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc.'s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $2,661,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Arkadios Wealth Advisors lifted its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 11.8% in the first quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 24,723 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,775,000 after buying an additional 2,612 shares during the last quarter. Tredje AP fonden lifted its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 7.2% in the first quarter. Tredje AP fonden now owns 2,044,426 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $146,769,000 after buying an additional 138,182 shares during the last quarter. Vestcor Inc lifted its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 46.2% in the first quarter. Vestcor Inc now owns 92,356 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $6,630,000 after buying an additional 29,200 shares during the last quarter. Brucke Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 4.6% in the first quarter. Brucke Financial Inc. now owns 15,088 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,071,000 after buying an additional 659 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FOCUS Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 5.4% in the first quarter. FOCUS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 23,525 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,689,000 after buying an additional 1,215 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.90% of the company's stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

Wells Fargo & Company stock traded down $2.83 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $77.80. The stock had a trading volume of 16,070,055 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,511,252. The company has a 50-day moving average of $78.56 and a two-hundred day moving average of $74.94. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. The company has a market cap of $253.18 billion, a PE ratio of 13.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.20. Wells Fargo & Company has a fifty-two week low of $50.15 and a fifty-two week high of $84.83.

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

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

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 8th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. This is a positive change from Wells Fargo & Company's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 8th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. Wells Fargo & Company's payout ratio is currently 27.40%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Phillip Securities cut Wells Fargo & Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Barclays reduced their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $92.00 to $87.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Cowen reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $77.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $80.39.

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.