Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Shares Sold by Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC

Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC decreased its position in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 28.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,386 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,338 shares during the quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $201,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital World Investors raised its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 26,319,775 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,295,459,000 after buying an additional 263,176 shares during the last quarter. Sanders Capital LLC raised its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 25,218,016 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,241,231,000 after acquiring an additional 781,772 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 4.4% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 19,848,290 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,178,591,000 after purchasing an additional 831,975 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 5,905,934 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $290,690,000 after purchasing an additional 25,896 shares during the last quarter. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. grew its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 67.1% in the first quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 5,852,764 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $339,226,000 after purchasing an additional 2,349,595 shares during the period. 75.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wells Fargo & Company Price Performance

Shares of WFC stock opened at $55.10 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $56.13 and a two-hundred day moving average of $57.88. The firm has a market cap of $192.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.16. Wells Fargo & Company has a 1-year low of $38.38 and a 1-year high of $62.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.33 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.29 by $0.04. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 12.30% and a net margin of 15.17%. The business had revenue of $20.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.29 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.25 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 9th were issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.90%. This is an increase from Wells Fargo & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 9th. Wells Fargo & Company’s payout ratio is 32.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $65.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $62.00 to $59.00 in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $62.00 to $61.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Twelve research 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, Wells Fargo & Company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $60.29.

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.