Dodge & Cox Sells 11,857,936 Shares of Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

Dodge & Cox lessened its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 23.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 38,887,925 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 11,857,936 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company makes up approximately 1.8% of Dodge & Cox’s holdings, making the stock its 20th largest position. Dodge & Cox’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $3,259,586,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Marquette Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Wells Fargo & Company by 472.4% in the third quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 332 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 274 shares during the period. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the third quarter worth $30,000. Kilter Group LLC bought a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company in the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Main Street Group LTD increased its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 36.9% in the 3rd quarter. Main Street Group LTD now owns 438 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the period. 75.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Wells Fargo & Company

In related news, EVP Ellen R. Patterson sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.40, for a total transaction of $5,244,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 169,496 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,813,950.40. This trade represents a 26.14% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Bridget E. Engle sold 30,000 shares of Wells Fargo & Company stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.10, for a total value of $2,613,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 83,478 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,270,933.80. The trade was a 26.44% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 115,000 shares of company stock valued at $10,050,000 in the last three months. 0.08% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. HSBC reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $74.00 price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Argus increased their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $94.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Truist Financial cut their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $104.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Friday, March 6th. Finally, CICC Research initiated coverage on Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $96.00 price objective on the stock. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $97.03.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Down 1.5%

WFC opened at $74.11 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $228.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.82, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.90. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $87.72 and its 200-day simple moving average is $86.47. Wells Fargo & Company has a twelve month low of $58.42 and a twelve month high of $97.76.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $21.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.63 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 17.27% and a return on equity of 12.90%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.43 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 6th were paid a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 6th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Wells Fargo & Company’s payout ratio is 28.71%.

More Wells Fargo & Company News

Here are the key news stories impacting Wells Fargo & Company this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Technically deeply oversold and analyst support could spark a relief bounce — MarketBeat notes WFC is trading well below recent highs, its RSI is in oversold territory, and several outlets/analysts maintain Outperform/Buy ratings and high price targets that imply significant upside if sentiment stabilizes. Bargain Alert: Wells Fargo and Goldman Sachs Look Deeply Oversold
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic optionality in digital assets — filings show Wells Fargo has applied for a WFUSD trademark covering stablecoins and blockchain payment services, signaling a possible future new revenue stream (still speculative and regulatory-dependent). Wells Fargo Submits WFUSD Trademark Application
• Neutral Sentiment: Active analyst research flow — Wells Fargo analysts continue to move ratings/targets across sectors (cuts on Aptiv, upgrades in chemicals, positive calls on travel and retail names). This shows robust research activity that can influence trading in other names but is not directly catalytic for WFC’s fundamentals. Wells Fargo Cuts Aptiv Price Target Wells Fargo Upgrades Chemical Stocks
• Negative Sentiment: Earnings, revenue and operational concerns remain — MarketBeat highlights that WFC missed revenue/earnings expectations in January, has a relatively high efficiency ratio vs. peers, and saw headline risk from reported exposure to the failed U.K. mortgage finance firm Market Financial Solutions; those issues help explain selling pressure and could limit near-term multiple expansion. Bargain Alert: Wells Fargo and Goldman Sachs Look Deeply Oversold

About Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company is a diversified, U.S.-based financial services company headquartered in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1852 by Henry Wells and William G. Fargo, the firm has evolved from its origins in express delivery and pioneer-era banking into one of the largest full-service banks in the United States. The company provides a broad range of financial products and services to individual, small business, commercial, and institutional clients. Charles W. Scharf serves as chief executive officer.

Wells Fargo operates across several core business segments, including consumer banking and lending, commercial banking, corporate and investment banking, and wealth and investment management.