Two Sigma Securities LLC Increases Holdings in Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

Two Sigma Securities LLC increased its position in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 969.4% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 32,050 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 29,053 shares during the quarter. Two Sigma Securities LLC’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $2,649,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of WFC. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 183.0% in the 2nd quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 307,759 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,433,000 after acquiring an additional 199,014 shares during the last quarter. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. raised its position in Wells Fargo & Company by 11.0% in the 2nd quarter. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. now owns 27,376 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,262,000 after purchasing an additional 2,705 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co raised its position in Wells Fargo & Company by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co now owns 47,434 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,920,000 after purchasing an additional 311 shares during the period. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board lifted its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 4.8% in the second quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 153,916 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $12,720,000 after purchasing an additional 7,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mufg Securities Americas Inc. lifted its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 8.8% in the second quarter. Mufg Securities Americas Inc. now owns 101,193 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,363,000 after purchasing an additional 8,150 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.90% of the company’s stock.

Wells Fargo & Company News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Wells Fargo & Company this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo is reportedly seeking to recruit hundreds of independent financial advisers, expanding its Wealth & Investment Management division and targeting affluent and high-net-worth clients. The initiative builds on a multiyear overhaul and could support fee-based revenue, asset growth and deeper customer relationships. WFC Broadens Wealth Focus: Can Its Multi-Year Revamp Drive Growth?
• Positive Sentiment: The wealth-management push follows an approximately $1.5 billion revamp and emphasizes independent advisers who can use Wells Fargo’s platform and infrastructure. Successful hiring and retention could improve the division’s long-term growth prospects, although benefits will take time to materialize. Wells Fargo Steps Up Wealth Hiring After $1.5 Billion Revamp
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts collectively maintain a “Moderate Buy” recommendation for Wells Fargo. The rating indicates generally constructive sentiment, but it does not represent a new earnings forecast or a clearly identifiable catalyst. Wells Fargo Given Average Recommendation of Moderate Buy by Analysts
• Neutral Sentiment: A market-focused report noted that WFC advanced even as the broader market declined, suggesting relative investor support. The article did not identify a major new earnings announcement, guidance change or regulatory development behind the move. Wells Fargo Gains As Market Dips: What You Should Know

Analyst Ratings Changes

WFC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $98.00 to $94.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $93.50 to $95.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $85.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Two 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $98.61.

Wells Fargo & Company Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of WFC opened at $86.62 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $261.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.59, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $86.27 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $82.63. Wells Fargo & Company has a twelve month low of $72.78 and a twelve month high of $97.76.

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

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Friday, August 7th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. This is a boost from Wells Fargo & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Wells Fargo & Company’s payout ratio is 29.07%.

Wells Fargo & Company Company Profile

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.