Barclays Reiterates “Equal Weight” Rating for WEX (NYSE:WEX)

WEX (NYSE:WEX)‘s stock had its “equal weight” rating reiterated by Barclays in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, Marketbeat reports. They currently have a $200.00 price objective on the business services provider’s stock, down from their prior price objective of $207.00. Barclays‘s price target would indicate a potential upside of 19.12% from the company’s previous close.

WEX has been the subject of several other reports. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of WEX from $238.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of WEX from $200.00 to $180.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of WEX from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on WEX from $285.00 to $230.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on WEX from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, WEX currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $228.64.

WEX Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WEX opened at $167.90 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $6.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.57. The company’s fifty day moving average is $188.00 and its two-hundred day moving average is $186.39. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87. WEX has a 12-month low of $165.51 and a 12-month high of $244.04.

WEX (NYSE:WEX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The business services provider reported $4.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.82 by $0.53. WEX had a return on equity of 31.35% and a net margin of 12.45%. The firm had revenue of $665.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $688.03 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.44 earnings per share. WEX’s quarterly revenue was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that WEX will post 13.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at WEX

In related news, COO Robert Joseph Deshaies sold 175 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.44, for a total transaction of $33,152.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 7,582 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,436,334.08. This represents a 2.26 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its position in WEX by 206.1% in the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 150 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in WEX during the second quarter worth $33,000. Quarry LP raised its stake in WEX by 717.4% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 188 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in WEX in the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in WEX by 456.1% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 228 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.47% of the company’s stock.

About WEX

WEX Inc operates a commerce platform in the United States and internationally. The Mobility segment offers fleet vehicle payment solutions, transaction processing, and information management services; and provides account activation and account retention services; authorization and billing inquiries, and account maintenance services; account management; credit and collections services; merchant services; analytics solutions; and ancillary services and offerings.