Short Interest in WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX) Increases By 6,975.1%

Key Points

• WEX Inc. experienced a dramatic increase in short interest, rising by 6,975.1% to a total of 1,790,000 shares as of July 15th, indicating heightened bearish sentiment among investors.
• The company reported earnings of $3.51 per share for the last quarter, exceeding analyst expectations by $0.11, although revenue declined 2.5% year-over-year.
• Analysts have set new target prices for WEX, with Mizuho raising it to $185.00 and Morgan Stanley to $170.00, while the stock maintains an average "Hold" rating.

WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX - Get Free Report) was the target of a large growth in short interest in July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totaling 1,790,000 shares, agrowthof6,975.1% from the June 30th total of 25,300 shares. Approximately5.3% of the company's stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 520,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.4 days. Based on an average trading volume of 520,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.4 days. Approximately5.3% of the company's stock are short sold.

WEX Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WEX traded down $3.12 during trading on Friday, reaching $166.56. 384,082 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 729,201. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $148.21 and its 200 day simple moving average is $149.06. The stock has a market cap of $5.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.06, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.23. WEX has a 12-month low of $110.45 and a 12-month high of $217.47. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.99.

WEX (NYSE:WEX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The business services provider reported $3.51 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.11. WEX had a return on equity of 41.87% and a net margin of 11.79%. The firm had revenue of $636.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $631.42 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.46 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was down 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that WEX will post 14.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on WEX shares. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on WEX from $142.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Oppenheimer assumed coverage on WEX in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. Mizuho raised their price objective on WEX from $150.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday. Barclays raised their price objective on WEX from $135.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on WEX in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $150.00 price objective for the company. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $181.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at WEX

In related news, CEO Melissa D. Smith bought 3,721 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 29th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $134.57 per share, with a total value of $500,734.97. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 101,182 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,616,061.74. The trade was a 3.82% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Jennifer Kimball sold 1,400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.08, for a total value of $183,512.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 3,177 shares in the company, valued at $416,441.16. This trade represents a 30.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On WEX

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Clark Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in WEX in the 2nd quarter worth about $480,000. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its holdings in WEX by 44.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 4,248 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $624,000 after buying an additional 1,316 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in WEX by 16.4% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 68,716 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $10,094,000 after buying an additional 9,663 shares during the last quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new stake in WEX in the 2nd quarter worth about $987,000. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in WEX by 28.2% in the 2nd quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 3,222 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $473,000 after buying an additional 709 shares during the last quarter. 97.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About WEX

WEX Inc operates a commerce platform in the United States and internationally. The Mobility segment offers fleet vehicle payment solutions, transaction processing, and information management services; and provides account activation and account retention services; authorization and billing inquiries, and account maintenance services; account management; credit and collections services; merchant services; analytics solutions; and ancillary services and offerings.

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