Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Sees Large Volume Increase After Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) saw strong trading volume on Wednesday following a stronger than expected earnings report. 8,474,453 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 33% from the previous session’s volume of 12,725,662 shares.The stock last traded at $75.05 and had previously closed at $71.19.

The financial services provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $20.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.58 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 14.43% and a return on equity of 12.25%. Wells Fargo & Company’s revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.86 earnings per share.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.11%. Wells Fargo & Company’s payout ratio is 33.26%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on WFC shares. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $71.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Compass Point upped their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $60.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $67.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $61.00 price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $69.92.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of WFC. Mattson Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Modus Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.90% of the company’s stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Up 6.6 %

The business’s 50 day moving average is $72.41 and its 200-day moving average is $63.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $252.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.18.

About Wells Fargo & Company

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.