Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Rating Lowered to Sell at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Wells Fargo (WFC) from a "hold" to a "sell" in a recent research note.
• Despite the downgrade, the MarketBeat analyst consensus remains a Moderate Buy with a consensus price target of $97.75, supported by multiple buy/outperform ratings from firms like RBC, Jefferies and Wolfe.
• In the latest quarter WFC reported $1.60 EPS (beating by $0.02) and $21.45B revenue (slightly below estimates), while shares trade around $79.45 versus a 52-week range of $68.67–$97.76.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) was downgraded by Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note issued on Saturday.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on WFC. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $100.00 price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. They set a "buy" rating and a $100.00 price target on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $101.00 to $98.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $109.00 price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, HSBC raised Wells Fargo & Company from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $94.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $97.75.

Wells Fargo & Company Price Performance

Shares of WFC opened at $79.45 on Friday. The business's 50-day moving average is $81.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $86.09. The company has a market capitalization of $245.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.26, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.90. Wells Fargo & Company has a fifty-two week low of $68.67 and a fifty-two week high of $97.76.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.58 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $21.45 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.85 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 13.27% and a net margin of 17.26%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.39 EPS. Research analysts predict that Wells Fargo & Company will post 6.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Bridget E. Engle sold 30,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.10, for a total transaction of $2,613,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 83,478 shares in the company, valued at $7,270,933.80. This trade represents a 26.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Ellen R. Patterson sold 60,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.40, for a total value of $5,244,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 169,496 shares in the company, valued at $14,813,950.40. This trade represents a 26.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 115,000 shares of company stock worth $10,050,000 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WFC. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 62.3% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 66,233 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,652,000 after buying an additional 25,436 shares in the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC lifted its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 12.9% in the 2nd quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 22,904 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,835,000 after buying an additional 2,615 shares in the last quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC lifted its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 111.0% in the 2nd quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 14,008 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,122,000 after buying an additional 7,368 shares in the last quarter. Vivaldi Capital Management LP raised its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 5.4% in the 2nd quarter. Vivaldi Capital Management LP now owns 3,229 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $259,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 51.2% in the 2nd quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 25,718 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,044,000 after acquiring an additional 8,714 shares during the last quarter. 75.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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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