Wells Fargo & Company $WFC Shares Bought by Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 7.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,859,680 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,223,999 shares during the quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned 0.56% of Wells Fargo & Company worth $1,496,998,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Access Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. McElhenny Sheffield Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the second quarter worth about $27,000. Marquette Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 472.4% during the third quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 332 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 274 shares during the period. Kilter Group LLC acquired a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Aventus Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the third quarter worth approximately $37,000. 75.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Wells Fargo & Company

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

• Positive Sentiment: Asset?cap lift enabling growth — management is ramping lending and growth initiatives now that the Fed’s asset cap is gone, which supports higher future loan volumes and revenue potential. Freed from Asset Cap, Wells Fargo Ramps up Lending
• Positive Sentiment: Q4 EPS beat — Wells Fargo reported EPS above consensus (helping underlying profitability) even as revenue missed estimates; management flagged improving core profitability and stronger wealth results. Wells Fargo posts earnings beat but revenue misses expectations
• Positive Sentiment: Insider/insider?adjacent buying — a disclosed purchase by Sen. John Boozman was reported, which some investors view as a modest signal of confidence. Sen. John Boozman Buys Wells Fargo & Company Shares
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst reactions are mixed — several firms revised price targets and ratings after Q4 (some trims, some raises); consensus remains around a “hold”/modest upside, creating balanced near?term analyst flow rather than a uniform boost. These Analysts Revise Their Forecasts On Wells Fargo Following Q4 Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: New coverage and broader industry commentary — CICC initiated coverage and major outlets highlighted sector?wide strength in trading and wealth, which could support longer?term estimates but doesn’t remove near?term uncertainty. Wells Fargo Coverage Initiated at CICC Research
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue missed and severance dragged on profits — commentary and reporting pointed to material severance and restructuring charges that pressured reported profit and prompted concern about near?term earnings quality. Wells Fargo misses profit estimates on severance costs, shares fall
• Negative Sentiment: Sector and policy overhang — bank stocks broadly pulled back after earnings, and proposals to cap credit?card rates have emerged as a regulatory risk that could hit consumer finance revenue if enacted. Bank Stocks Get Punished After Earnings—Is Valuation the Real Problem?
• Negative Sentiment: Housing sentiment softens — the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index fell unexpectedly in January, a modest negative for mortgage origination outlooks and related loan growth. U.S. Homebuilder Confidence Unexpectedly Deteriorates In January

Wells Fargo & Company Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WFC opened at $88.36 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $277.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.09, a P/E/G ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.09. Wells Fargo & Company has a twelve month low of $58.42 and a twelve month high of $97.76. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $90.17 and a two-hundred day moving average of $84.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05.

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

Wells Fargo & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 7th were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 7th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio is 28.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WFC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 4th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $95.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $102.00 to $100.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Citigroup boosted their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 23rd. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $95.00 to $93.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Wells Fargo & Company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $94.87.

Wells Fargo & Company Profile

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.