BTC Capital Management Inc. Sells 24,639 Shares of Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

BTC Capital Management Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 16.1% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 128,450 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 24,639 shares during the quarter. BTC Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $10,615,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Godfrey Financial Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Miller Capital Partners Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Navalign LLC bought a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Joseph Group Capital Management purchased a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Phillip James Consulting Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the first quarter valued at $28,000. 75.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Wells Fargo & Company

Here are the key news stories impacting Wells Fargo & Company this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo declared quarterly cash dividends on six series of preferred stock. The announcement provides clarity for income-focused investors and signals that the bank continues to support its preferred-capital structure. Wells Fargo & Company Declares Cash Dividends on Preferred Stock
• Positive Sentiment: Recent analysis suggests WFC could be about 10% undervalued despite strong gains over the past three months, supporting the view that valuation may still leave room for additional appreciation. Wells Fargo Could Be 10% Undervalued After Preferred Dividend Declaration
• Positive Sentiment: Investors have been rotating from weaker-performing artificial-intelligence stocks into financials, creating a favorable sector backdrop for Wells Fargo and other banks. Risk-On Momentum in Bank Stocks Echoes Aftermath of Dot-Com Bust
• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo’s latest earnings exceeded expectations, with $1.96 in earnings per share and $22.62 billion in revenue, while revenue grew 8.6% year over year. Analysts continue to focus on potential net-interest-income growth, asset-cap removal and increased capital returns. WFC Stock Gains 20.5% in 3 Months: Buy, Hold or Sell the Stock Now?
• Neutral Sentiment: The bank is expanding its post-asset-cap strategy through tokenized deposits for corporate clients and new long-term debt and depositary-share offerings. The initiatives could improve payment capabilities and investment capacity, but their financial impact remains uncertain. Is Wells Fargo’s Tokenized Deposit Push Reshaping Its Post-Cap Investment Story?
• Negative Sentiment: After a roughly 20% three-month advance, valuation and profit-taking risks could limit near-term upside, making investors more sensitive to execution on growth and regulatory milestones. Why Is Wells Fargo Up Since Last Earnings Report?

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $97.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Phillip Securities upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $93.50 to $95.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Raymond James Financial reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Wells Fargo & Company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $98.61.

Wells Fargo & Company Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of Wells Fargo & Company stock opened at $88.74 on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company has a fifty-two week low of $72.78 and a fifty-two week high of $97.76. The business’s fifty day moving average is $85.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $83.10. The firm has a market cap of $268.34 billion, a PE ratio of 12.90, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.73 by $0.23. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 13.85% and a net margin of 17.55%.The business had revenue of $22.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.86 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.60 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Wells Fargo & Company will post 7.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This is a boost from Wells Fargo & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.07%.

Wells Fargo & Company Company Profile

Wells Fargo & Company is a diversified, U.S.-based financial services company headquartered in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1852 by Henry Wells and William G. Fargo, the firm has evolved from its origins in express delivery and pioneer-era banking into one of the largest full-service banks in the United States. The company provides a broad range of financial products and services to individual, small business, commercial, and institutional clients. Charles W. Scharf serves as chief executive officer.

Wells Fargo operates across several core business segments, including consumer banking and lending, commercial banking, corporate and investment banking, and wealth and investment management.