Wells Fargo & Company Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:WFC)

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Friday. Stock investors acquired 87,517 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 27% compared to the typical daily volume of 68,787 call options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on WFC. Compass Point raised their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $57.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $62.00 to $61.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 15th. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Wells Fargo & Company to a “hold” rating and cut their target price for the company from $62.00 to $59.00 in a report on Friday, August 16th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $65.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Wells Fargo & Company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $61.82.

Insider Activity at Wells Fargo & Company

In related news, EVP Beurden Saul Van sold 35,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total value of $2,169,650.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 126,687 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,853,327.13. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Wells Fargo & Company news, EVP Ather Williams III sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.70, for a total transaction of $3,822,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 163,610 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,421,957. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Beurden Saul Van sold 35,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total transaction of $2,169,650.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 126,687 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,853,327.13. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.08% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Wells Fargo & Company

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 4.4% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 19,848,290 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,178,591,000 after purchasing an additional 831,975 shares during the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. raised its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 67.1% in the 1st quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 5,852,764 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $339,226,000 after purchasing an additional 2,349,595 shares during the last quarter. First Pacific Advisors LP raised its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. First Pacific Advisors LP now owns 5,278,666 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $313,500,000 after purchasing an additional 108,480 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 38.1% in the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 5,131,320 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $297,411,000 after purchasing an additional 1,415,647 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 4,662,953 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $270,035,000 after purchasing an additional 48,419 shares during the last quarter. 75.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wells Fargo & Company Price Performance

Wells Fargo & Company stock opened at $64.52 on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company has a 52 week low of $38.62 and a 52 week high of $65.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $57.41 and its 200 day simple moving average is $58.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $219.61 billion, a PE ratio of 13.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.16.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.42 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.14. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 14.43% and a return on equity of 12.25%. The business had revenue of $20.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.40 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.39 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th will be given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.48%. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.26%.

Wells Fargo & Company Company Profile

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.