Wells Fargo & Company $WFC Stock Position Lifted by Harvest Portfolios Group Inc.

Key Points

• Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. increased its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 289.6% in Q1, owning 331,933 shares worth nearly $24 million as of its latest SEC filing.
• Wells Fargo recently announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.45 per share, up from $0.40, which translates to an annualized yield of 2.2%.
• Analysts have set a target price range for Wells Fargo shares, with Bank of America raising it from $83 to $90, reflecting a strong consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" among research analysts.

Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. increased its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 289.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 331,933 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 246,744 shares during the period. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc.'s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $23,829,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WFC. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 277.4% in the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 10,740,934 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $771,092,000 after buying an additional 7,894,919 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 7,887.9% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,393,083 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $243,589,000 after purchasing an additional 3,350,605 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 10.7% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 34,339,295 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,411,992,000 after purchasing an additional 3,307,855 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $198,801,000. Finally, Theleme Partners LLP acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $187,049,000. 75.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

Shares of WFC opened at $80.19 on Tuesday. The company's 50 day moving average price is $79.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $74.88. Wells Fargo & Company has a 52 week low of $50.22 and a 52 week high of $84.83. The company has a market capitalization of $256.88 billion, a PE ratio of 13.73, a PEG ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.20. 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 (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.54 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 firm had revenue of $20.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.83 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.33 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 8th will be given a $0.45 dividend. 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 yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 8th. Wells Fargo & Company's payout ratio is presently 30.82%.

Wells Fargo & Company announced that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, April 29th that allows the company to repurchase $40.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase up to 17.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on WFC shares. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $83.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Raymond James Financial downgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $77.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Wells Fargo & Company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $81.58.

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.

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