Hilltop National Bank Reduces Stake in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Hilltop National Bank cut its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 6.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 13,658 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 906 shares during the quarter. Hilltop National Bank’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $959,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WFC. Investors Research Corp raised its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 1.2% during the third quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 13,461 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $760,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Ellenbecker Investment Group raised its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Ellenbecker Investment Group now owns 4,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $250,000 after buying an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. Income Research & Management purchased a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 3rd quarter valued at about $211,000. Modera Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 18,014 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,018,000 after buying an additional 167 shares during the period. Finally, Catalina Capital Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 1.7% in the third quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 9,886 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $558,000 after buying an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. 75.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wells Fargo & Company Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WFC traded down $1.87 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $69.70. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 4,824,618 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,265,880. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $72.02 and a two-hundred day moving average of $62.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $232.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.49, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.18. Wells Fargo & Company has a 1-year low of $46.12 and a 1-year high of $78.13.

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, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $20.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.40 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 14.43% and a return on equity of 12.25%. Wells Fargo & Company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.39 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.30%. Wells Fargo & Company’s payout ratio is 33.26%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on WFC. Phillip Securities upgraded Wells Fargo & Company from a “neutral” rating to an “accumulate” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $60.83 to $65.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price 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. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $69.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $65.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $69.92.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Beurden Saul Van sold 35,000 shares of the company’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 value of $2,169,650.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 126,687 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,853,327.13. This represents a 21.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Ather Williams III sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.70, for a total value of $3,822,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 163,610 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,421,957. This trade represents a 26.83 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.