WEX (NYSE:WEX) Upgraded by Cantor Fitzgerald to “Hold” Rating

WEX (NYSE:WEX) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on WEX. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of WEX from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of WEX in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Bank of America raised WEX from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $178.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on WEX from $195.00 to $175.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on WEX from $198.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $170.25.

WEX Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of WEX stock opened at $156.93 on Tuesday. WEX has a 1-year low of $110.45 and a 1-year high of $188.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.33. The stock has a market cap of $5.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.41, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.99. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $152.61 and a 200-day moving average of $158.26.

WEX (NYSE:WEX) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The business services provider reported $4.59 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.45 by $0.14. WEX had a return on equity of 45.10% and a net margin of 10.81%.The business had revenue of $691.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $678.25 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $4.35 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that WEX will post 14.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at WEX

In other news, Director Stephen Montgomery Smith acquired 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 13th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $144.25 per share, for a total transaction of $144,250.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 7,971 shares in the company, valued at $1,149,816.75. The trade was a 14.35% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Jennifer Kimball sold 494 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.40, for a total value of $74,791.60. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 3,671 shares in the company, valued at $555,789.40. The trade was a 11.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of WEX

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WEX. Boston Partners bought a new position in shares of WEX in the second quarter valued at $187,102,000. Turtle Creek Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of WEX during the third quarter worth about $93,289,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of WEX in the 2nd quarter worth about $42,812,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in WEX by 158.3% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 350,892 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $55,097,000 after acquiring an additional 215,036 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS Group AG boosted its stake in WEX by 68.2% during the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 434,148 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $68,391,000 after purchasing an additional 176,042 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.47% of the company’s stock.

About WEX

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.