Wells Fargo & Company $WFC Shares Purchased by Advisors Capital Management LLC

Key Points

• Advisors Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Wells Fargo by 2.6% in the fourth quarter to 612,384 shares (an additional 15,523 shares), worth about $57.07 million at quarter-end.
• Wells Fargo fundamentals and outlook: shares opened at $79.45 with a market cap of ~$245.16B and a P/E of 12.26; the company reported $1.60 EPS (beating estimates), pays a $0.45 quarterly dividend (≈2.3% yield), and holds an average analyst rating of "Moderate Buy" with a $97.75 target.

Advisors Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) by 2.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 612,384 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 15,523 shares during the quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC's holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $57,074,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 18.6% during the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 35,660,903 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,989,104,000 after purchasing an additional 5,584,930 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 1.9% in the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 21,009,237 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,760,994,000 after buying an additional 399,088 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 7.4% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 17,859,680 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,496,998,000 after buying an additional 1,223,999 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners raised its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 9,128,470 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $763,675,000 after buying an additional 174,350 shares during the period. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 7,673,807 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $643,219,000 after buying an additional 165,240 shares during the period. 75.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

Shares of WFC opened at $79.45 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $245.16 billion, a PE ratio of 12.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.06. The business's fifty day moving average price is $81.34 and its 200 day moving average price is $86.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.90. Wells Fargo & Company has a 12-month low of $68.67 and a 12-month high of $97.76.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.58 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $21.45 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.85 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 13.27% and a net margin of 17.26%.Wells Fargo & Company's quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.39 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Wells Fargo & Company will post 6.83 EPS for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, March 1st. Investors of record on Friday, February 6th were issued a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 6th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Wells Fargo & Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $113.00 price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Wolfe Research restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $109.00 target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Freedom Capital lowered shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, January 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $97.75.

Insider Activity at Wells Fargo & Company

In other Wells Fargo & Company news, EVP Ellen R. Patterson sold 60,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.40, for a total transaction of $5,244,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 169,496 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,813,950.40. The trade was a 26.14% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Bridget E. Engle sold 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.10, for a total value of $2,613,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 83,478 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,270,933.80. This trade represents a 26.44% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 115,000 shares of company stock worth $10,050,000 in the last 90 days. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wells Fargo & Company Company Profile

Wells Fargo & Company is a diversified, U.S.-based financial services company headquartered in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1852 by Henry Wells and William G. Fargo, the firm has evolved from its origins in express delivery and pioneer-era banking into one of the largest full-service banks in the United States. The company provides a broad range of financial products and services to individual, small business, commercial, and institutional clients. Charles W. Scharf serves as chief executive officer.

Wells Fargo operates across several core business segments, including consumer banking and lending, commercial banking, corporate and investment banking, and wealth and investment management.

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