BTC Capital Management Inc. Lowers Stock Position in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

BTC Capital Management Inc. lessened its stake in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) by 2.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 164,530 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 4,658 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company makes up approximately 1.1% of BTC Capital Management Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 26th largest position. BTC Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $11,812,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Rialto Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Investment Counsel Co. of Nevada bought a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. BNP Paribas purchased a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its position in 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 during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.90% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. 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 report on Monday, April 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $82.00 to $73.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada raised shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $80.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $84.00 to $73.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Wells Fargo & Company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $75.73.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WFC traded down $0.14 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $74.64. The stock had a trading volume of 11,235,076 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,416,673. The company has a market capitalization of $242.90 billion, a PE ratio of 13.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.13. Wells Fargo & Company has a 1 year low of $50.15 and a 1 year high of $81.50. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $70.07 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $72.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07.

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

Wells Fargo & Company announced that its Board of Directors 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 reacquire up to 17.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th were issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. Wells Fargo & Company's dividend payout ratio is presently 28.73%.

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.