NorthRock Partners LLC Buys 48,254 Shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

NorthRock Partners LLC raised its position in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) by 182.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 74,753 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 48,254 shares during the period. NorthRock Partners LLC's holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $5,251,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 19.1% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 190,330 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $13,369,000 after purchasing an additional 30,510 shares in the last quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. increased its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 8,300 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $583,000 after purchasing an additional 431 shares in the last quarter. NatWest Group plc raised its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 57.7% in the fourth quarter. NatWest Group plc now owns 172,484 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $12,115,000 after purchasing an additional 63,102 shares during the last quarter. Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,656,000. Finally, Modera Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 14.1% during the fourth quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 20,562 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,444,000 after buying an additional 2,548 shares during the last quarter. 75.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

WFC traded down $0.08 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $76.10. 4,730,425 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 17,469,127. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $69.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $72.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $247.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. Wells Fargo & Company has a 1-year low of $50.15 and a 1-year high of $81.50.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $20.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.82 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 12.38% and a net margin of 15.73%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.20 EPS. 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 Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.10%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 9th. Wells Fargo & Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.73%.

Wells Fargo & Company declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, April 29th that permits the company to repurchase $40.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 17.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $84.00 to $73.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $82.00 to $78.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Raymond James reduced their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $88.00 to $78.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $80.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of 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. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $75.73.

Wells Fargo & Company 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.