Diversified Enterprises LLC Boosts Stake in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Diversified Enterprises LLC increased its position in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 3.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,696 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 222 shares during the period. Diversified Enterprises LLC’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $469,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 20,532 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,442,000 after buying an additional 449 shares in the last quarter. First Financial Group Corp purchased a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $330,000. Van Strum & Towne Inc. raised its position in Wells Fargo & Company by 26.2% during the fourth quarter. Van Strum & Towne Inc. now owns 9,639 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $677,000 after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares during the period. Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd raised its position in Wells Fargo & Company by 102.2% during the fourth quarter. Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd now owns 83,100 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,837,000 after purchasing an additional 42,000 shares during the period. Finally, Valtinson Bruner Financial Planning LLC raised its position in Wells Fargo & Company by 8.7% during the fourth quarter. Valtinson Bruner Financial Planning LLC now owns 20,147 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,415,000 after purchasing an additional 1,608 shares during the period. 75.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Up 3.6 %

Shares of NYSE WFC opened at $70.96 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $233.31 billion, a PE ratio of 13.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.16. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $75.89 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $68.93. Wells Fargo & Company has a 12-month low of $50.15 and a 12-month high of $81.50.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $20.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.58 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 12.38% and a net margin of 15.73%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.86 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 7th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.25%. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.74%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on WFC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $81.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Compass Point upped their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $60.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $69.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $72.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $74.39.

Wells Fargo & Company Company Profile

Wells Fargo & Co is a diversified and community-based financial services company, which engages in the provision of banking, insurance, investments, mortgage, and consumer and commercial finance products and services. It operates through the following segments: Consumer Banking and Lending, Commercial Banking, Corporate and Investment Banking, and Wealth and Investment Management.