Sapient Capital LLC Takes Position in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Sapient Capital LLC acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 11,708 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $576,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. First Financial Corp IN increased its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. First Financial Corp IN now owns 4,595 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $226,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares during the last quarter. CX Institutional increased its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. CX Institutional now owns 20,280 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $998,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares during the last quarter. ERTS Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. ERTS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,733 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $331,000 after acquiring an additional 228 shares during the period. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership lifted its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership now owns 14,309 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $704,000 after acquiring an additional 233 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 19.1% during the 4th quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 1,523 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WFC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $58.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $63.00 target price (up from $57.00) on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and set a $51.00 price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Tuesday, January 9th. Finally, Argus lifted their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $57.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $58.99.

Wells Fargo & Company Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE:WFC opened at $60.30 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $210.22 billion, a PE ratio of 12.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.18. Wells Fargo & Company has a 52-week low of $37.18 and a 52-week high of $61.76. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $57.63 and its 200 day moving average price is $50.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last announced its earnings results on Friday, April 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.10. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 15.63% and a return on equity of 12.30%. The business had revenue of $20.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.19 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.23 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.08 EPS for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 9th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.32%. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.23%.

Wells Fargo & 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.