Ather Williams III Sells 60,000 Shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Stock

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) EVP Ather Williams III sold 60,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.70, for a total value of $3,822,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 163,610 shares in the company, valued at $10,421,957. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Wells Fargo & Company Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WFC opened at $64.38 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $56.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $57.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $224.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.85. Wells Fargo & Company has a 12 month low of $38.58 and a 12 month high of $64.71.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.14. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 12.30% and a net margin of 15.17%. The firm had revenue of $20.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.40 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.39 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Investors of record on Friday, August 9th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This is an increase from Wells Fargo & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.49%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. Wells Fargo & Company’s payout ratio is currently 32.85%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $62.00 to $61.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $61.00 price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Monday. Phillip Securities upgraded Wells Fargo & Company from a “neutral” rating to an “accumulate” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $60.83 to $65.00 in a research report on Tuesday. Wolfe Research raised Wells Fargo & Company from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $65.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Wells Fargo & Company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $61.82.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WFC. Marshall Wace LLP raised its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 3,295.6% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,331,925 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $138,493,000 after purchasing an additional 2,404,898 shares during the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 67.1% in the 1st quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 5,852,764 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $339,226,000 after acquiring an additional 2,349,595 shares during the last quarter. Rokos Capital Management LLP raised its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 141.6% in the 1st quarter. Rokos Capital Management LLP now owns 2,620,868 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $151,853,000 after acquiring an additional 1,536,152 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 38.1% in the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 5,131,320 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $297,411,000 after acquiring an additional 1,415,647 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UniSuper Management Pty Ltd raised its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 378.5% in the 1st quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 1,198,987 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $69,493,000 after acquiring an additional 948,422 shares during the last quarter. 75.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.