Point72 Europe London LLP Grows Stock Holdings in Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

Key Points

• Point72 Europe London LLP has increased its stake in Wells Fargo by 36.0%, owning 640,525 shares valued at nearly $46 million, making it the fund's 3rd largest position.
• A significant increase in stake was also seen from Massachusetts Financial Services Co., which raised its holdings by 277.4% in the first quarter, now owning over 10.7 million shares worth approximately $771 million.
• Wells Fargo has announced a dividend increase to $0.45 per share, up from the previous $0.40, with a payout ratio of 30.82% and a yield of 2.2%.

Point72 Europe London LLP lifted its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) by 36.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 640,525 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 169,600 shares during the quarter. Wells Fargo & Company comprises about 3.1% of Point72 Europe London LLP's portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Point72 Europe London LLP's holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $45,983,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Accretive Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 1st quarter worth about $399,000. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. lifted its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 10.4% during the 1st quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. now owns 758,376 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $54,471,000 after buying an additional 71,740 shares during the last quarter. Secured Retirement Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 1st quarter worth about $408,000. RKL Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 166.4% during the 1st quarter. RKL Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,185 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $588,000 after buying an additional 5,113 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allianz SE lifted its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 22.6% during the 1st quarter. Allianz SE now owns 212,335 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $15,244,000 after buying an additional 39,150 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.90% of the company's stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

Wells Fargo & Company stock traded up $0.17 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $82.15. The company's stock had a trading volume of 12,041,152 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,422,870. Wells Fargo & Company has a 1-year low of $50.22 and a 1-year high of $84.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $80.41 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $74.98. The company has a market cap of $263.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.07, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.25.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 in the previous year, the company earned $1.33 EPS. The business's revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 8th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. This is an increase from Wells Fargo & Company's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Wells Fargo & Company's payout ratio is 30.82%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on WFC. Cowen restated a "hold" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $83.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of 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. Finally, Evercore ISI reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $81.58.

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.