Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Shares Gap Up After Earnings Beat

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) gapped up prior to trading on Friday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $57.75, but opened at $59.96. Wells Fargo & Company shares last traded at $60.56, with a volume of 5,304,727 shares trading hands.

The financial services provider reported $1.42 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $20.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.40 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 15.17% and a return on equity of 12.30%. Wells Fargo & Company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.39 EPS.

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th were paid a $0.40 dividend. This is a boost from Wells Fargo & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.62%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. Wells Fargo & Company’s payout ratio is presently 32.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WFC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $68.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $68.00 to $67.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Wells Fargo & Company to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $62.00 to $59.00 in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $60.65.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Wells Fargo & Company

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WFC. Mattson Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 53.7% during the 2nd quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 630 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the period. Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Institutional investors own 75.90% of the company’s stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Trading Up 5.8 %

The company has a market capitalization of $213.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.86, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.16. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $55.24 and a 200-day moving average price of $57.75. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11.

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.