Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC Invests $514,000 in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 7,327 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $514,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WFC. Rialto Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Investment Counsel Co. of Nevada acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. BNP Paribas acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 126.7% in the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 424 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 237 shares in the last quarter. Finally, McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.90% of the company's stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of NYSE:WFC traded up $0.76 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $74.49. The stock had a trading volume of 14,009,786 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,459,634. Wells Fargo & Company has a 12-month low of $50.15 and a 12-month high of $81.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.86. The company has a market cap of $242.39 billion, a PE ratio of 13.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.13. The company's 50 day moving average is $70.06 and its 200-day moving average is $72.88.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.16. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 12.38% and a net margin of 15.73%. The business had revenue of $20.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.82 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.20 earnings per share. Wells Fargo & Company's revenue for the quarter was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, April 29th that allows the company to buyback $40.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to buy up to 17.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.15%. Wells Fargo & Company's dividend payout ratio is 28.73%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on WFC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $82.00 to $73.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Raymond James lowered their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $88.00 to $78.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Phillip Securities raised Wells Fargo & Company from a "moderate buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 14th. Royal Bank of Canada raised Wells Fargo & Company from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $80.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 7th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $75.73.

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.