UBS Group Raises WEX (NYSE:WEX) Price Target to $185.00

Key Points

• UBS Group raised the price target for WEX from $138.00 to $185.00, indicating a potential upside of 6% based on the stock's previous close.
• The stock currently holds a consensus rating of "Hold" among analysts, with 12 rating it as a hold and 3 as a buy.
• WEX reported an earnings per share of $3.51 for the last quarter, surpassing estimates and contributing to an annual revenue drop of 2.5%.
• Insider activity showed CAO Jennifer Kimball sold 1,400 shares while CEO Melissa D. Smith bought 3,721 shares, reflecting mixed sentiment within the company's leadership.

WEX (NYSE:WEX - Free Report) had its price target raised by UBS Group from $138.00 to $185.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. UBS Group currently has a neutral rating on the business services provider's stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on WEX. William Blair reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of WEX in a report on Friday. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of WEX from $142.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of WEX from $160.00 to $140.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of WEX from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of WEX in a report on Thursday, July 17th. They set a "hold" rating and a $150.00 target price on the stock. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, WEX has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $179.00.

WEX Trading Up 0.8%

WEX traded up $1.43 on Friday, reaching $175.53. 745,194 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 463,946. WEX has a one year low of $110.45 and a one year high of $217.47. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $145.30 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $148.91. The company has a market cap of $6.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.99.

WEX (NYSE:WEX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The business services provider reported $3.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.40 by $0.11. WEX had a return on equity of 41.87% and a net margin of 11.79%. The business had revenue of $636.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $631.42 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.46 EPS. The business's revenue was down 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that WEX will post 14.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at WEX

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On WEX

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new position in shares of WEX in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its stake in shares of WEX by 282.1% in the second quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 214 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares during the last quarter. State of Wyoming purchased a new position in shares of WEX in the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of WEX by 161.5% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 272 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of WEX in the first quarter worth about $44,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.47% of the company's stock.

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.