Essex Savings Bank Sells 844 Shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Essex Savings Bank decreased its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 4.5% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 17,830 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 844 shares during the quarter. Essex Savings Bank’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $1,252,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WFC. Connective Portfolio Management LLC acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $632,000. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $805,000. St. Louis Financial Planners Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter valued at $1,855,000. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. lifted its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 38.2% during the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 28,294 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,987,000 after acquiring an additional 7,822 shares during the period. Finally, Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. boosted its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 12.7% during the fourth quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 2,235 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $157,000 after acquiring an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.90% of the company’s stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Up 6.6 %

WFC stock opened at $75.86 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $252.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $72.41 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $63.15. Wells Fargo & Company has a 1-year low of $46.12 and a 1-year high of $78.13.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.09. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 14.43% and a return on equity of 12.25%. The company had revenue of $20.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.58 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.86 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.45 EPS for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.26%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on WFC shares. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $67.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Phillip Securities raised Wells Fargo & Company from a “neutral” rating to an “accumulate” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $60.83 to $65.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $68.00 to $67.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $61.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $71.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $69.92.

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.