Grimes & Company Inc. Sells 283 Shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Grimes & Company Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 0.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,867 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 283 shares during the period. Grimes & Company Inc.’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $1,789,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WFC. Fortis Group Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC bought a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Core Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. grew its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 356,620 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. 75.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wells Fargo & Company Trading Up 3.4 %

Shares of WFC stock opened at $59.39 on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company has a 12-month low of $38.38 and a 12-month high of $62.55. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $59.55 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $55.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The company has a market capitalization of $207.05 billion, a PE ratio of 12.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.17.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $20.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.19 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 12.30% and a net margin of 15.63%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.23 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on WFC. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. StockNews.com raised Wells Fargo & Company from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Monday, April 15th. HSBC raised their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $59.00 to $61.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average 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.