Westpac Banking Corp Purchases New Stake in Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

Key Points

• Westpac Banking Corp acquired 40,855 Wells Fargo shares in the second quarter, valued at approximately $3.38 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 75.9% of Wells Fargo’s stock.
• Wells Fargo reported quarterly EPS of $1.96, exceeding the $1.73 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 8.6% year over year to $22.62 billion.
• The bank raised its quarterly dividend from $0.45 to $0.50 per share, equivalent to a $2.00 annualized payout and a 2.4% yield. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $98.61.

Westpac Banking Corp acquired a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 40,855 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,376,000.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Godfrey Financial Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Miller Capital Partners Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Navalign LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Joseph Group Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Core Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.90% of the company's stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Trading Up 0.1%

NYSE:WFC opened at $84.82 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $256.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.92. Wells Fargo & Company has a one year low of $72.78 and a one year high of $97.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.90. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $86.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $82.79.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.73 by $0.23. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 13.85% and a net margin of 17.55%.The company had revenue of $22.62 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.86 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.60 EPS. Wells Fargo & Company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Wells Fargo & Company will post 7.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. This is an increase from Wells Fargo & Company's previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Wells Fargo & Company's dividend payout ratio is 29.07%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WFC has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Wells Fargo & Company from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, June 14th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $105.00 to $104.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $97.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Phillip Securities raised shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "moderate buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $98.61.

About Wells Fargo & Company

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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