MQS Management LLC Buys Shares of 1,467 WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX)

MQS Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 1,467 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $260,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WEX. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new position in WEX during the first quarter worth $29,000. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of WEX during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in WEX in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in WEX by 456.1% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 228 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the period. Finally, Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in WEX by 233.9% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 187 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.47% of the company’s stock.

WEX Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of WEX stock opened at $207.10 on Friday. WEX Inc. has a one year low of $161.95 and a one year high of $244.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $185.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $199.17. The stock has a market cap of $8.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.54.

WEX (NYSE:WEX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The business services provider reported $3.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.20 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $673.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $677.44 million. WEX had a net margin of 9.32% and a return on equity of 31.05%. Analysts predict that WEX Inc. will post 13.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on WEX. William Blair raised shares of WEX to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on WEX from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on WEX from $275.00 to $230.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on WEX from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $239.58.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Robert Joseph Deshaies sold 1,651 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.67, for a total value of $299,937.17. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 7,757 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,409,214.19. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, CFO Jagtar Narula sold 508 shares of WEX stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total value of $101,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 7,120 shares in the company, valued at $1,424,000. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Robert Joseph Deshaies sold 1,651 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.67, for a total value of $299,937.17. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 7,757 shares in the company, valued at $1,409,214.19. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 5,985 shares of company stock worth $1,094,907. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

WEX Profile

WEX Inc operates a commerce platform in the United States and internationally. The Mobility segment offers fleet vehicle payment solutions, transaction processing, and information management services; and provides account activation and account retention services; authorization and billing inquiries, and account maintenance services; account management; credit and collections services; merchant services; analytics solutions; and ancillary services and offerings.