Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Shares Sold by Fermata Advisors LLC

Fermata Advisors LLC reduced its position in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 9.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 4,229 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 447 shares during the quarter. Fermata Advisors LLC’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $245,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in WFC. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,623,044,000. LSV Asset Management grew its position in Wells Fargo & Company by 40.4% in the fourth quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 9,308,450 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $458,162,000 after acquiring an additional 2,677,050 shares in the last quarter. Morningstar Investment Services LLC grew its position in Wells Fargo & Company by 103.7% in the fourth quarter. Morningstar Investment Services LLC now owns 3,833,570 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $189,684,000 after acquiring an additional 1,951,477 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in Wells Fargo & Company by 42.7% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 5,780,421 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $285,668,000 after acquiring an additional 1,729,132 shares in the last quarter. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. grew its position in Wells Fargo & Company by 91.5% in the fourth quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 3,503,169 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $172,426,000 after acquiring an additional 1,673,917 shares in the last quarter. 75.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WFC has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $57.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 1st. StockNews.com upgraded Wells Fargo & Company from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $59.00 to $61.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and set a $63.00 price objective (up from $57.00) on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Wells Fargo & Company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $59.15.

Wells Fargo & Company Price Performance

Shares of WFC opened at $57.23 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $199.52 billion, a PE ratio of 11.95, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.17. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $59.59 and its 200 day moving average price is $54.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.87. Wells Fargo & Company has a twelve month low of $38.38 and a twelve month high of $62.55.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $20.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.19 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 15.63% and a return on equity of 12.30%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.23 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 10th were given a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 9th. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio is 29.23%.

Wells Fargo & Company Company Profile

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.