NFJ Investment Group LLC Takes Position in Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

NFJ Investment Group LLC acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund acquired 228,978 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $18,923,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Silvant Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $5,134,000. Mystic Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the second quarter worth approximately $2,327,000. Oxford Financial Group LTD. LLC acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the second quarter worth approximately $534,000. Kilter Group LLC acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the second quarter worth approximately $50,000. Finally, Portfolio Design Labs LLC bought a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the second quarter valued at $2,386,000. 75.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wells Fargo & Company Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WFC opened at $84.70 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $86.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $82.85. The company has a market cap of $256.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.92. Wells Fargo & Company has a 12-month low of $72.78 and a 12-month high of $97.76. 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 issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $22.62 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.86 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 13.85% and a net margin of 17.55%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.60 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Wells Fargo & Company will post 7.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is an increase 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.07%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WFC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $98.00 to $94.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Friday, July 17th. Phillip Securities upgraded Wells Fargo & Company from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen raised Wells Fargo & Company from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, June 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $97.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. Two equities 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $98.61.

Wells Fargo & 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.