Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Trading 1.6% Higher After Strong Earnings

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)’s share price was up 1.6% during trading on Monday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as high as $63.95 and last traded at $63.51. Approximately 6,728,355 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 62% from the average daily volume of 17,556,692 shares. The stock had previously closed at $62.51.

The financial services provider reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.16. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 15.73% and a return on equity of 12.38%. The firm had revenue of $20.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.82 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.20 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 7th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.53%. Wells Fargo & Company’s payout ratio is 29.74%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on WFC. Bank of America lowered their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $85.00 to $83.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $82.00 to $73.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $92.00 to $87.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $80.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $74.88.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Rialto Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Investment Counsel Co. of Nevada purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. BNP Paribas bought a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 126.7% during the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 424 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 237 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Modus Advisors LLC bought a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. 75.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wells Fargo & Company Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.86. The company has a market cap of $206.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.02. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $72.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $71.02.

About Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Co is a diversified and community-based financial services company, which engages in the provision of banking, insurance, investments, mortgage, and consumer and commercial finance products and services. It operates through the following segments: Consumer Banking and Lending, Commercial Banking, Corporate and Investment Banking, and Wealth and Investment Management.