Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Shares Up 4.2% - Should You Buy?

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)'s stock price shot up 4.2% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $69.50 and last traded at $69.02. 6,892,961 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 61% from the average session volume of 17,461,364 shares. The stock had previously closed at $66.23.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $82.00 to $73.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Raymond James decreased their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $88.00 to $78.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $85.00 to $83.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target 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. Six 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 data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $75.34.

Wells Fargo & Company Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $227.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.96, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.02. The company's fifty day moving average is $70.01 and its 200 day moving average is $71.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07.

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 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $20.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.82 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 15.73% and a return on equity of 12.38%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.20 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 7th were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.29%. Wells Fargo & Company's dividend payout ratio is 28.73%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Wells Fargo & Company

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Mather Group LLC. increased its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 12.9% during the first quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 23,424 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,682,000 after buying an additional 2,680 shares during the last quarter. Alta Advisers Ltd lifted its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 56.3% in the first quarter. Alta Advisers Ltd now owns 17,207 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,235,000 after acquiring an additional 6,200 shares during the last quarter. Lodestar Private Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 43.5% in the 1st quarter. Lodestar Private Asset Management LLC now owns 20,603 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,479,000 after acquiring an additional 6,245 shares during the period. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 1st quarter worth about $109,000. Finally, CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp bought a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 1st quarter valued at about $18,018,000. 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.