Palisade Capital Management LP Takes Position in WEX Inc. $WEX

Palisade Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 12,616 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,780,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in WEX in the 2nd quarter worth about $446,833,000. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of WEX by 794.0% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 889,802 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $132,563,000 after purchasing an additional 790,271 shares in the last quarter. Turtle Creek Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of WEX during the third quarter worth about $93,289,000. Par Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of WEX by 21.6% during the fourth quarter. Par Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,252,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $335,503,000 after purchasing an additional 400,500 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of WEX in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $50,202,000. 97.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on WEX shares. Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of WEX from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of WEX from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of WEX from $161.00 to $172.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Evercore raised shares of WEX to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald set a $178.00 price target on shares of WEX in a report on Monday, July 27th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $183.30.

WEX Stock Performance

Shares of WEX stock opened at $198.07 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.75 billion, a PE ratio of 19.73, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.82. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $168.48 and its 200 day simple moving average is $158.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.62, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04. WEX Inc. has a one year low of $125.29 and a one year high of $203.99.

WEX (NYSE:WEX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $5.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.08 by $0.27. WEX had a net margin of 12.56% and a return on equity of 43.19%. The firm had revenue of $753.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $740.72 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.95 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. WEX has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 5.450-5.650 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 19.680-20.080 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that WEX Inc. will post 17.11 earnings per share for the current year.

WEX announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, May 14th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the business services provider to reacquire up to 21.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other WEX news, COO Carlos Carriedo sold 1,075 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $186.00, for a total transaction of $199,950.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 11,076 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,060,136. This represents a 8.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ann Elena Drew sold 3,400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.02, for a total value of $598,468.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 7,988 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,406,047.76. The trade was a 29.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 8,658 shares of company stock worth $1,489,027 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

WEX Profile

WEX Inc is a global financial technology company specializing in business payment solutions for fleet, travel, and corporate payments. The company delivers software-driven platforms and card-based services that help businesses automate payment processes, manage expenses and improve operational efficiency across a range of industries, including transportation, healthcare and government.

Founded in 1983 as Wright Express in Portland, Maine, the company began by offering fuel card services to trucking fleets.