Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Boosts Stake in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 10.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 425,906 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 39,021 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $24,060,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of WFC. Investors Research Corp boosted its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 13,461 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $760,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Ellenbecker Investment Group increased its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Ellenbecker Investment Group now owns 4,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $250,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Income Research & Management acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the third quarter valued at about $211,000. Modera Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 0.9% during the third quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 18,014 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,018,000 after buying an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Catalina Capital Group LLC grew its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 1.7% in the third quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 9,886 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $558,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Wells Fargo & Company

In related news, EVP Beurden Saul Van sold 35,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total transaction of $2,169,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 126,687 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,853,327.13. This trade represents a 21.65 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Ather Williams III sold 60,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.70, for a total transaction of $3,822,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 163,610 shares in the company, valued at $10,421,957. This represents a 26.83 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.08% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WFC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Wells Fargo & Company to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $62.00 to $59.00 in a research note on Friday, August 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $68.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $65.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $65.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $63.07.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

NYSE WFC opened at $75.96 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. Wells Fargo & Company has a 1-year low of $42.52 and a 1-year high of $76.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $252.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.14. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $63.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $59.80.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.14. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 14.43% and a return on equity of 12.25%. The firm had revenue of $20.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.40 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.39 earnings per share. Wells Fargo & Company’s revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.42 EPS for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.11%. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.26%.

Wells Fargo & Company Company Profile

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.