Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Shares Gap Down - Here's What Happened

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)'s share price gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $83.43, but opened at $80.75. Wells Fargo & Company shares last traded at $79.35, with a volume of 11,823,293 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WFC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. TD Cowen assumed coverage on Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $83.00 price objective on the stock. Phillip Securities upgraded Wells Fargo & Company from a "moderate buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Raymond James Financial lowered Wells Fargo & Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $83.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $80.13.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Down 5.3%

The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $76.72 and a 200 day moving average price of $74.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $256.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.16.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $20.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $20.83 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 16.19% and a return on equity of 12.15%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.33 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. Wells Fargo & Company's payout ratio is 28.73%.

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

Institutional Trading of Wells Fargo & Company

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings 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 in the last quarter. Investment Counsel Co. of Nevada bought a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. BNP Paribas bought a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Accent Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the first quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Motco grew its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 397.6% during the first quarter. Motco now owns 408 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 326 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.90% of the company's stock.

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.