Wells Fargo & Company $WFC Shares Purchased by Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd

Key Points

• Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its holdings in Wells Fargo by 2.4%, now owning 440,326 shares valued at approximately $35.3 million.
• The company recently raised its quarterly dividend from $0.40 to $0.45, indicating a positive change for shareholders.
• Wells Fargo's latest earnings report showed an EPS of $1.54, beating estimates, with a revenue of $20.82 billion for the quarter.

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd lifted its stake in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 440,326 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 10,349 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd's holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $35,279,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ayrshire Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 40.4% in the second quarter. Ayrshire Capital Management LLC now owns 5,193 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $416,000 after buying an additional 1,493 shares in the last quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 131.0% in the second quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC now owns 13,564 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,087,000 after buying an additional 7,693 shares in the last quarter. Sunflower Bank N.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 9.6% in the second quarter. Sunflower Bank N.A. now owns 8,088 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $648,000 after buying an additional 708 shares in the last quarter. Financial Management Network Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the second quarter worth $315,000. Finally, Intelligence Driven Advisers LLC raised its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 48.6% during the second quarter. Intelligence Driven Advisers LLC now owns 11,805 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $946,000 after purchasing an additional 3,861 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.90% of the company's stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

NYSE WFC traded up $1.11 on Friday, reaching $84.61. The stock had a trading volume of 36,444,763 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,141,861. Wells Fargo & Company has a 12-month low of $53.31 and a 12-month high of $84.93. 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 business's 50-day moving average price is $80.44 and its 200 day moving average price is $75.38. The stock has a market cap of $271.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.25.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last released 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. 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%.Wells Fargo & Company's revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.33 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 8th were issued a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 8th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. This is a boost from Wells Fargo & Company's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Wells Fargo & Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.82%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on WFC shares. Phillip Securities downgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Evercore ISI reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Cowen reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Dbs Bank raised shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $82.56.

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.