Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) has earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-two research firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, ten have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $69.92.

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on WFC. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $62.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $68.00 to $67.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective 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. Compass Point increased their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $60.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Phillip Securities upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “neutral” rating to an “accumulate” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $60.83 to $65.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th.

Insider Activity at Wells Fargo & Company

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Synovus Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 32.2% in the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 99,049 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,595,000 after purchasing an additional 24,126 shares during the last quarter. Cardinal Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Cardinal Capital Management Inc. now owns 575,419 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,505,000 after acquiring an additional 11,037 shares during the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 37.2% during the 3rd quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 638,233 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $36,055,000 after acquiring an additional 173,083 shares during the period. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp boosted its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 17.4% during the 3rd quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 177,570 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $10,031,000 after acquiring an additional 26,320 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Chartwell Investment Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 16.4% in the third quarter. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC now owns 132,829 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,504,000 after purchasing an additional 18,717 shares during the period. 75.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Down 0.1 %

WFC stock opened at $71.55 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $72.02 and a 200 day moving average of $62.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $238.23 billion, a PE ratio of 14.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.18. Wells Fargo & Company has a 52 week low of $46.12 and a 52 week high of $78.13. 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 released its earnings results on Friday, October 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.40 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.39 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.24%. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.26%.

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.