NFJ Investment Group LLC Purchases New Position in Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

NFJ Investment Group LLC acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 228,978 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $18,923,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WFC. Godfrey Financial Associates Inc. bought a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Miller Capital Partners Inc. bought a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Navalign LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Joseph Group Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Phillip James Consulting Co. bought a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company in the first quarter worth $28,000. Institutional investors own 75.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on WFC. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Friday, July 17th. UBS Group reduced their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $105.00 to $104.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Bank of America raised their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $85.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $98.61.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

NYSE:WFC opened at $84.70 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $256.13 billion, a PE ratio of 12.31, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.92. Wells Fargo & Company has a 1 year low of $72.78 and a 1 year high of $97.76. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $86.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $82.85.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by $0.23. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 17.55% and a return on equity of 13.85%. The firm had revenue of $22.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.86 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.60 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Wells Fargo & Company will post 7.26 EPS for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Friday, August 7th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. This is a boost from Wells Fargo & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. Wells Fargo & Company’s payout ratio is presently 29.07%.

About Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company is a diversified, U.S.-based financial services company headquartered in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1852 by Henry Wells and William G. Fargo, the firm has evolved from its origins in express delivery and pioneer-era banking into one of the largest full-service banks in the United States. The company provides a broad range of financial products and services to individual, small business, commercial, and institutional clients. Charles W. Scharf serves as chief executive officer.

Wells Fargo operates across several core business segments, including consumer banking and lending, commercial banking, corporate and investment banking, and wealth and investment management.