Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Sees Large Volume Increase on Earnings Beat

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) shares saw an uptick in trading volume on Wednesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. 8,474,453 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 33% from the previous session’s volume of 12,725,662 shares.The stock last traded at $75.05 and had previously closed at $71.19.

The financial services provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $20.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.58 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 12.25% and a net margin of 14.43%. Wells Fargo & Company’s quarterly revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.86 EPS.

Wells Fargo & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.11%. Wells Fargo & Company’s payout ratio is 33.26%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WFC has been the subject of several research reports. Phillip Securities raised shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “neutral” rating to an “accumulate” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $60.83 to $65.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $62.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $71.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $72.17.

Institutional Trading of Wells Fargo & Company

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WFC. Charles Schwab Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $238,000. Royal Fund Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 232.1% in the 4th quarter. Royal Fund Management LLC now owns 63,636 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,470,000 after purchasing an additional 44,472 shares in the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 41,289 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,900,000 after purchasing an additional 1,622 shares in the last quarter. Culbertson A N & Co. Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 7.9% in the 4th quarter. Culbertson A N & Co. Inc. now owns 71,406 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,016,000 after purchasing an additional 5,219 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 33,540 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,356,000 after purchasing an additional 591 shares in the last quarter. 75.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wells Fargo & Company Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The business’s fifty day moving average is $72.47 and its 200 day moving average is $63.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $252.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.18.

Wells Fargo & Company Company Profile

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.