Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Receives Strong-Buy Rating from Raymond James Financial

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)'s stock had its "strong-buy" rating reissued by Raymond James Financial in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $84.00 target price on the financial services provider's stock, up from their previous target price of $78.00. Raymond James Financial's price objective would suggest a potential upside of 12.82% from the company's current price.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on WFC. Bank of America raised their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $83.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. Truist Financial reduced their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $84.00 to $73.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $82.00 to $73.50 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $76.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $92.00 to $87.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $77.98.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

NYSE WFC traded up $1.96 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $74.46. The stock had a trading volume of 6,348,469 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,440,838. Wells Fargo & Company has a 52-week low of $50.15 and a 52-week high of $81.50. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $71.77 and a 200 day moving average of $72.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.84. The stock has a market cap of $242.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.16.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 12.15% and a net margin of 16.19%. The company's revenue was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.20 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, April 29th that authorizes the company to buyback $40.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to reacquire up to 17.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Wells Fargo & Company

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rialto Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 585.5% in the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 377 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 322 shares during the period. Investment Counsel Co. of Nevada acquired a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. BNP Paribas purchased a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Motco increased its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 397.6% in the 1st quarter. Motco now owns 408 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 326 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 & 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.

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