Tredje AP fonden Increases Position in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Tredje AP fonden increased its stake in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 7.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,044,426 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 138,182 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company comprises approximately 1.4% of Tredje AP fonden’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest position. Tredje AP fonden’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $146,769,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WFC. Investment Counsel Co. of Nevada bought a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. BNP Paribas bought a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Motco lifted its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 397.6% in the first quarter. Motco now owns 408 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 326 shares during the last quarter. Parvin Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 63.7% in the fourth quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 496 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. 75.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Down 0.5%

WFC opened at $82.63 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. Wells Fargo & Company has a 1-year low of $50.15 and a 1-year high of $84.83. The company has a market capitalization of $268.88 billion, a PE ratio of 14.15, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.16. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $78.14 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $74.78.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.13. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 16.82% and a return on equity of 12.29%. The business had revenue of $20.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.83 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.33 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 8th will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.18%. This is an increase from Wells Fargo & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.40%.

Wells Fargo & Company announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, April 29th that authorizes the company to repurchase $40.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 17.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WFC has been the subject of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target 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. Raymond James Financial downgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $80.39.

Wells Fargo & Company Company Profile

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.