WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Hold" by Analysts

Shares of WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX - Get Free Report) have earned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the thirteen research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $176.90.

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of WEX from $172.00 to $138.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of WEX from $160.00 to $140.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on WEX from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Robert W. Baird set a $186.00 price target on WEX in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Oppenheimer started coverage on shares of WEX in a report on Thursday, May 15th. They set a "market perform" rating on the stock.

WEX Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:WEX traded down $0.48 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $140.13. The company had a trading volume of 462,664 shares, compared to its average volume of 572,393. The stock has a market cap of $4.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.68, a PEG ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 1.22. WEX has a 12 month low of $110.45 and a 12 month high of $217.47. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.07. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $130.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $155.30.

WEX (NYSE:WEX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The business services provider reported $3.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.11. WEX had a return on equity of 32.35% and a net margin of 11.78%. The business had revenue of $636.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $631.42 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.46 EPS. WEX's revenue for the quarter was down 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that WEX will post 14.09 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Jennifer Kimball sold 1,400 shares of WEX stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.08, for a total value of $183,512.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,177 shares in the company, valued at $416,441.16. The trade was a 30.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Melissa D. Smith purchased 3,721 shares of WEX stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 29th. The stock was bought at an average price of $134.57 per share, with a total value of $500,734.97. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 101,182 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,616,061.74. This represents a 3.82% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On WEX

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of WEX. Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new position in WEX in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. State of Wyoming acquired a new position in shares of WEX in the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its position in WEX by 108.4% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 248 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC grew its position in WEX by 72.2% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 272 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the period. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in WEX by 161.5% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 272 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares during the period. 97.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

WEX Company Profile

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.