SWS Partners Reduces Stake in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

SWS Partners trimmed its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 3.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 45,688 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,480 shares during the quarter. Wells Fargo & Company makes up 1.0% of SWS Partners’ portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. SWS Partners’ holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $3,209,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Modus Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. purchased a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, BankPlus Trust Department purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.90% of the company’s stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

Wells Fargo & Company stock opened at $76.96 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $253.06 billion, a PE ratio of 14.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.18. Wells Fargo & Company has a one year low of $50.15 and a one year high of $81.50. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $76.00 and its 200 day moving average price is $68.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.86.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last announced its 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 15.73% and a return on equity of 12.38%. The business had revenue of $20.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.58 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.86 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 7th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.08%. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.74%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on WFC shares. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. UBS Group increased their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $69.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $67.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Compass Point increased their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $60.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $73.39.

Wells Fargo & Company Profile

Wells Fargo & Co is a diversified and community-based financial services company, which engages in the provision of banking, insurance, investments, mortgage, and consumer and commercial finance products and services. It operates through the following segments: Consumer Banking and Lending, Commercial Banking, Corporate and Investment Banking, and Wealth and Investment Management.