Brookstone Capital Management Purchases 1,263 Shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Brookstone Capital Management increased its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 6.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 19,476 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,263 shares during the quarter. Brookstone Capital Management’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $1,129,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Fortis Group Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the third quarter worth $25,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC purchased a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Core Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. raised its position in Wells Fargo & Company by 208.0% during the 4th quarter. Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. now owns 528,104 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 356,620 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners acquired a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.90% of the company’s stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

NYSE WFC opened at $59.39 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.86. Wells Fargo & Company has a 1-year low of $38.38 and a 1-year high of $62.55. The company has a market cap of $207.05 billion, a PE ratio of 12.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.17. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $59.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $55.10.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last released its earnings results on Friday, April 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $20.86 billion during 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.23 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 10th were paid a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 9th. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.23%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $63.00 target price (up previously from $57.00) on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Compass Point reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $64.00 price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 25th. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Monday, April 15th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $59.15.

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.