Wells Fargo & Company $WFC Shares Purchased by Smartleaf Asset Management LLC

Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 54.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 38,088 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,393 shares during the quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $3,224,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the second quarter worth approximately $3,990,551,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 54.9% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 16,635,681 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,332,851,000 after acquiring an additional 5,894,747 shares in the last quarter. Amundi grew its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 18.2% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 14,155,753 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,165,868,000 after acquiring an additional 2,180,693 shares during the last quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 8,010.7% during the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,973,730 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $158,135,000 after purchasing an additional 1,949,395 shares during the period. Finally, Mawer Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the third quarter valued at $147,165,000. 75.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wells Fargo & Company Trading Up 2.1%

NYSE WFC opened at $93.93 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05. Wells Fargo & Company has a 1-year low of $58.42 and a 1-year high of $97.76. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $91.64 and its 200-day simple moving average is $85.68. The company has a market capitalization of $294.85 billion, a PE ratio of 14.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.09.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.10. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 12.90% and a net margin of 17.27%.The firm had revenue of $11.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.63 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.43 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, March 1st. Investors of record on Friday, February 6th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 6th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on WFC shares. Bank of America lifted their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. CICC Research started coverage on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $96.00 target price on the stock. Robert W. Baird cut shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Argus lifted their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $94.00 to $101.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $94.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Wells Fargo & Company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $95.92.

Wells Fargo & Company Company Profile

Wells Fargo & Company is a diversified, U.S.-based financial services company headquartered in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1852 by Henry Wells and William G. Fargo, the firm has evolved from its origins in express delivery and pioneer-era banking into one of the largest full-service banks in the United States. The company provides a broad range of financial products and services to individual, small business, commercial, and institutional clients. Charles W. Scharf serves as chief executive officer.

Wells Fargo operates across several core business segments, including consumer banking and lending, commercial banking, corporate and investment banking, and wealth and investment management.