Gamco Investors INC. ET AL Trims Stock Holdings in Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

Gamco Investors INC. ET AL trimmed its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 3.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 501,577 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 15,575 shares during the quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $46,747,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Navalign LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Joseph Group Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Imprint Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. 75.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Wells Fargo & Company

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

• Negative Sentiment: JPMorgan reiterated a Hold rating on Wells Fargo and cut its price target to $86.50 from $91, reinforcing a more cautious near-term outlook for the stock. Wells Fargo (WFC) Stock Expected To Stay Under Pressure In The Short Term
• Neutral Sentiment: Wells Fargo announced cash dividends on six series of preferred stock, a routine capital return update that should not materially change the near-term outlook for common shares. Wells Fargo & Company Declares Cash Dividends on Preferred Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Commentary around Wells Fargo’s post-earnings performance noted that the stock remains below its recent levels after the company’s latest results, with investors still assessing whether revenue growth can offset higher compensation and technology costs. Wells Fargo Revenues Are Rising, But Can It Bend the Cost Curve?
• Neutral Sentiment: Wells Fargo’s economists changed their view on the timing of the next Fed rate cut, highlighting uncertainty around inflation and interest-rate expectations that could influence bank earnings and net interest income. Wells Fargo sees writing on the wall about the next Fed rate cut
• Negative Sentiment: Broader financial stocks weakened in the latest session, which may be adding pressure to Wells Fargo as part of a sector-wide move lower. Sector Update: Financial Stocks Fall Wednesday

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Kleber Santos sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.72, for a total transaction of $2,193,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 79,876 shares in the company, valued at $7,006,722.72. The trade was a 23.84% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Ellen R. Patterson sold 60,000 shares of Wells Fargo & Company stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.40, for a total value of $5,244,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 169,496 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,813,950.40. This represents a 26.14% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 115,000 shares of company stock worth $10,050,000 in the last ninety days. 0.14% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of WFC stock opened at $73.46 on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company has a 1-year low of $71.89 and a 1-year high of $97.76. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $79.30 and its 200 day moving average price is $85.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The company has a market cap of $224.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.96.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.58 by $0.02. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 13.27% and a net margin of 17.26%.The firm had revenue of $11.62 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.85 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.39 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Wells Fargo & Company will post 6.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company’s payout ratio is 27.78%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $98.00 to $94.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $101.00 to $98.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Robert W. Baird upgraded Wells Fargo & Company from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $85.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. Phillip Securities upgraded Wells Fargo & Company from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Evercore restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Friday, March 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $97.53.

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.