Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Receives $62.12 Average PT from Brokerages

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) has received a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the twenty-one ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $63.07.

Several analysts have recently weighed in on WFC shares. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $68.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. Wolfe Research upgraded Wells Fargo & Company from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $65.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $67.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $65.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Wells Fargo & Company to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $62.00 to $59.00 in a research report on Friday, August 16th.

Wells Fargo & Company Price Performance

Shares of WFC stock opened at $73.58 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $62.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $59.59. Wells Fargo & Company has a 52-week low of $42.15 and a 52-week high of $74.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $244.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.14.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last issued its earnings results on Friday, October 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $20.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.40 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 14.43% and a return on equity of 12.25%. The business’s revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.39 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.17%. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.26%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Wells Fargo & Company

In other Wells Fargo & Company news, EVP Ather Williams III sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.70, for a total value of $3,822,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 163,610 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,421,957. This trade represents a 26.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Beurden Saul Van sold 35,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total transaction of $2,169,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 126,687 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,853,327.13. The trade was a 21.65 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Wells Fargo & Company

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Mattson Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company in the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the third quarter valued at about $29,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the third quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the third quarter worth about $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.90% of the company’s stock.

About Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company, a financial services company, provides diversified banking, investment, mortgage, and consumer and commercial finance products and services in the United States and internationally. The company operates through four segments: Consumer Banking and Lending; Commercial Banking; Corporate and Investment Banking; and Wealth and Investment Management.