WEX (WEX) to Release Quarterly Earnings on Thursday

WEX (NYSE:WEX) is set to issue its quarterly earnings data before the market opens on Thursday, April 25th. Analysts expect the company to announce earnings of $3.45 per share for the quarter. Investors interested in participating in the company’s conference call can do so using this link.

WEX (NYSE:WEX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The business services provider reported $3.14 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.29 by ($0.15). WEX had a return on equity of 31.33% and a net margin of 10.46%. The company had revenue of $663.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $656.75 million. On average, analysts expect WEX to post $14 EPS for the current fiscal year and $16 EPS for the next fiscal year.

WEX Stock Down 1.6 %

Shares of WEX opened at $229.85 on Thursday. WEX has a 52-week low of $161.95 and a 52-week high of $244.04. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $228.84 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $201.82. The company has a market capitalization of $9.59 billion, a PE ratio of 37.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.59.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Ann Elena Drew sold 4,531 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $218.03, for a total value of $987,893.93. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,653 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $796,463.59. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CFO Jagtar Narula sold 309 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.24, for a total transaction of $72,071.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 5,528 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,289,350.72. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Ann Elena Drew sold 4,531 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $218.03, for a total value of $987,893.93. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,653 shares in the company, valued at approximately $796,463.59. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 69,433 shares of company stock worth $14,708,896 over the last three months. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio increased its holdings in shares of WEX by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 18,170 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,535,000 after acquiring an additional 484 shares during the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV raised its holdings in WEX by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 2,297 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $447,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its position in shares of WEX by 31.8% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 40,088 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $7,800,000 after buying an additional 9,667 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of WEX by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,199,017 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $816,919,000 after buying an additional 67,893 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vident Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of WEX by 96.4% in the 4th quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 3,406 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $663,000 after buying an additional 1,672 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.47% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on WEX shares. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of WEX in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Citigroup increased their price objective on WEX from $240.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on WEX from $205.00 to $239.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on WEX from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on WEX from $272.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $240.00.

About WEX

WEX Inc operates a commerce platform in the United States and internationally. The Mobility segment offers fleet vehicle payment solutions, transaction processing, and information management services; and provides account activation and account retention services; authorization and billing inquiries, and account maintenance services; account management; credit and collections services; merchant services; analytics solutions; and ancillary services and offerings.