Analysts Set Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Price Target at $67.57

Shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-two research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, ten have issued a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $69.92.

Several equities analysts have recently commented on WFC shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $72.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $61.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $61.00 price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $65.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Phillip Securities upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “neutral” rating to an “accumulate” rating and upped their price target for the company from $60.83 to $65.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Wells Fargo & Company

In related news, EVP Beurden Saul Van sold 35,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total transaction of $2,169,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 126,687 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,853,327.13. This trade represents a 21.65 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Ather Williams III sold 60,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.70, for a total value of $3,822,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 163,610 shares in the company, valued at $10,421,957. This trade represents a 26.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Wells Fargo & Company

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Synovus Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 32.2% during the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 99,049 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,595,000 after acquiring an additional 24,126 shares in the last quarter. Cardinal Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Cardinal Capital Management Inc. now owns 575,419 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,505,000 after purchasing an additional 11,037 shares in the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. raised its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 37.2% in the third quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 638,233 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $36,055,000 after purchasing an additional 173,083 shares during the last quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp raised its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 17.4% in the third quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 177,570 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $10,031,000 after purchasing an additional 26,320 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Chartwell Investment Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 16.4% during the third quarter. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC now owns 132,829 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,504,000 after purchasing an additional 18,717 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.90% of the company’s stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

Shares of WFC opened at $71.60 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $71.77 and a 200-day moving average price of $62.69. The company has a market cap of $238.39 billion, a PE ratio of 14.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.18. Wells Fargo & Company has a 12-month low of $46.12 and a 12-month high of $78.13.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.42 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $20.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.40 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 14.43% and a return on equity of 12.25%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.39 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.23%. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.26%.

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.