Wells Fargo & Company $WFC Shares Sold by Clark Capital Management Group Inc.

Key Points

• Clark Capital Management Group Inc. has reduced its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 31.5%, now holding 926,992 shares worth $66.55 million.
• Wells Fargo recently declared a quarterly dividend increase from $0.40 to $0.45 per share, representing a 2.2% dividend yield.
• The stock has received analyst ratings with ten giving a Buy rating and an average target price of $82.56, reflecting a generally positive outlook.

Clark Capital Management Group Inc. reduced its stake in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) by 31.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 926,992 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 425,441 shares during the period. Clark Capital Management Group Inc.'s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $66,549,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Accent Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Motco increased its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 397.6% in the 1st quarter. Motco now owns 408 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 326 shares in the last quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company in the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 63.7% in the 4th quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 496 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. 75.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WFC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Wall Street Zen raised Wells Fargo & Company from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. TD Cowen began coverage on Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $83.00 price target for the company. Truist Financial increased their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $83.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given 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 $82.56.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

Shares of WFC stock opened at $80.51 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.84. Wells Fargo & Company has a one year low of $50.22 and a one year high of $84.83. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $80.51 and its 200-day simple moving average is $75.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $257.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.79, 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 results on Tuesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.54 EPS 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $20.83 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.33 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 8th were given a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 8th. This is a positive change from Wells Fargo & Company's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Wells Fargo & Company's dividend payout ratio is 30.82%.

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.

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