WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX) Receives $179.82 Average Target Price from Analysts

Key Points

• WEX Inc. has received an average broker recommendation of "Hold", with twelve analysts recommending holding the stock and three issuing buy ratings.
• The consensus 1-year price target for WEX shares is approximately $179.82, with recent price targets set between $135.00 and $185.00 by various analysts.
• Insider trading activity has been notable, with COO Carlos Carriedo and another insider significant reductions in their stock holdings due to recent sales.

WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX - Get Free Report) has received a consensus rating of "Hold" from the fifteen research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $179.8182.

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on WEX in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $150.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on WEX from $142.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. William Blair reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of WEX in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on WEX from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, Zacks Research cut WEX from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, September 15th.

WEX Price Performance

WEX traded down $0.07 during trading on Friday, hitting $163.37. The company's stock had a trading volume of 297,488 shares, compared to its average volume of 656,785. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $168.59 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $149.69. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.99. WEX has a 12 month low of $110.45 and a 12 month high of $217.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.31.

Insider Transactions at WEX

In other WEX news, insider Ann Elena Drew sold 1,931 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.69, for a total value of $331,533.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 7,295 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,252,478.55. The trade was a 20.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Carlos Carriedo sold 875 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.68, for a total value of $150,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 5,270 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $904,753.60. The trade was a 14.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of WEX

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WEX. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in WEX by 1.0% during the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 59,053 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $9,272,000 after acquiring an additional 578 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in WEX by 27,871.3% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 69,089 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $10,848,000 after acquiring an additional 68,842 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC raised its holdings in WEX by 399.9% during the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 210,707 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $33,085,000 after acquiring an additional 168,558 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in WEX by 88.5% during the first quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 10,002 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,571,000 after buying an additional 4,695 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Optimize Financial Inc acquired a new position in WEX during the first quarter worth approximately $389,000. 97.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.