Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Shares Gap Up on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) shares gapped up prior to trading on Friday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $57.75, but opened at $59.96. Wells Fargo & Company shares last traded at $60.56, with a volume of 5,304,727 shares.

The financial services provider reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.25. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 12.30% and a net margin of 15.17%. The firm had revenue of $20.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.40 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.39 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis.

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 paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.62%. This is a boost from Wells Fargo & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on WFC shares. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $68.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Wells Fargo & Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $65.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group cut Wells Fargo & Company to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $62.00 to $59.00 in a research note on Friday, August 16th. BMO Capital Markets raised 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. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $62.00 to $61.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Wells Fargo & Company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $61.07.

Institutional Trading of Wells Fargo & Company

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Iams Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 8.8% in the 3rd quarter. Iams Wealth Management LLC now owns 35,145 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,985,000 after buying an additional 2,835 shares during the period. Empirical Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Empirical Asset Management LLC now owns 19,002 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,073,000 after buying an additional 242 shares during the period. Sapient Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Sapient Capital LLC now owns 335,503 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $18,953,000 after buying an additional 7,481 shares during the period. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 3rd quarter valued at about $81,000. Finally, Accelerate Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the 3rd quarter valued at about $236,000. 75.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wells Fargo & Company Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $212.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.86. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $55.39 and a 200-day simple moving average of $57.79.

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.