Westfield Capital Management Co. LP Purchases 30,306 Shares of WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX)

Westfield Capital Management Co. LP raised its stake in shares of WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX) by 13.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 258,384 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 30,306 shares during the quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP owned 0.62% of WEX worth $61,374,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in WEX by 15.6% during the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 377 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $73,000 after buying an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in WEX by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,733 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $337,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in WEX by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 1,893 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $368,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the period. Cozad Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of WEX by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Cozad Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,831 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,148,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of WEX in the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. 97.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

WEX Price Performance

WEX traded down $0.68 during trading on Friday, hitting $184.63. 516,950 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 393,795. WEX Inc. has a twelve month low of $161.95 and a twelve month high of $244.04. The company has a market cap of $7.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.02, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.06. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $182.80 and a 200 day moving average price of $206.40.

WEX (NYSE:WEX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The business services provider reported $2.98 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.83 by $0.15. WEX had a net margin of 10.21% and a return on equity of 30.92%. The business had revenue of $652.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $653.52 million. Equities research analysts forecast that WEX Inc. will post 13.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other WEX news, CFO Jagtar Narula sold 540 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.00, for a total transaction of $102,600.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 7,628 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,449,320. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other WEX news, COO Robert Joseph Deshaies sold 1,897 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $211.01, for a total transaction of $400,285.97. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 9,408 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,985,182.08. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jagtar Narula sold 540 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.00, for a total transaction of $102,600.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 7,628 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,449,320. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 4,911 shares of company stock valued at $1,008,402. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on WEX. Citigroup lifted their price target on WEX from $240.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on WEX in a report on Wednesday, June 5th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $200.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on WEX from $246.00 to $210.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 12th. Barclays boosted their price objective on WEX from $255.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on WEX from $272.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $238.85.

About WEX

WEX Inc operates a commerce platform in the United States and internationally. The Mobility segment offers fleet vehicle payment solutions, transaction processing, and information management services; and provides account activation and account retention services; authorization and billing inquiries, and account maintenance services; account management; credit and collections services; merchant services; analytics solutions; and ancillary services and offerings.