Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Receives $60.29 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

Shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the eighteen analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $60.24.

WFC has been the subject of several analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $62.00 to $61.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 15th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $67.00 to $65.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Wells Fargo & Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $65.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $68.00 to $67.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday.

Wells Fargo & Company Trading Down 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE:WFC opened at $55.42 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $55.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $57.79. Wells Fargo & Company has a one year low of $38.38 and a one year high of $62.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $193.21 billion, a PE ratio of 11.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.16.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last released its earnings results on Friday, July 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.29 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $20.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.29 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 12.30% and a net margin of 15.17%. Wells Fargo & Company’s revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.25 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Investors of record on Friday, August 9th were given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 9th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.89%. This is a boost from Wells Fargo & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.85%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Wells Fargo & Company

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WFC. Marshall Wace LLP raised its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 3,295.6% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,331,925 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $138,493,000 after buying an additional 2,404,898 shares in the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 67.1% in the first quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 5,852,764 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $339,226,000 after acquiring an additional 2,349,595 shares during the last quarter. Morningstar Investment Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 103.7% in the 4th quarter. Morningstar Investment Services LLC now owns 3,833,570 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $189,684,000 after purchasing an additional 1,951,477 shares in the last quarter. Rokos Capital Management LLP grew its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 141.6% during the 1st quarter. Rokos Capital Management LLP now owns 2,620,868 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $151,853,000 after purchasing an additional 1,536,152 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the 1st quarter worth approximately $84,819,000. 75.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Wells Fargo & Company

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.