Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Share Price Passes Above 200-Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

Shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $62.07 and traded as high as $70.79. Wells Fargo & Company shares last traded at $70.41, with a volume of 8,443,035 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $65.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $69.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Phillip Securities upgraded Wells Fargo & Company from a “neutral” rating to an “accumulate” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $60.83 to $65.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $71.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Wells Fargo & Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $65.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $67.49.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $70.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $62.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $234.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last posted its earnings results on Friday, October 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.42 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.14. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 12.25% and a net margin of 14.43%. The firm had revenue of $20.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.40 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.39 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.43 EPS for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.27%. Wells Fargo & Company’s payout ratio is 33.26%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Beurden Saul Van sold 35,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total value of $2,169,650.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 126,687 shares in the company, valued at $7,853,327.13. The trade was a 21.65 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Ather Williams III sold 60,000 shares of Wells Fargo & Company stock in a transaction that occurred 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $10,421,957. This represents a 26.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WFC. Income Research & Management purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the third quarter worth about $211,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the third quarter worth $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.