Great Lakes Advisors LLC Decreases Position in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Great Lakes Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 5.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,312,142 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 121,537 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company makes up about 1.2% of Great Lakes Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest holding. Great Lakes Advisors LLC owned 0.07% of Wells Fargo & Company worth $137,318,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WFC. John W. Brooker & Co. CPAs lifted its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. John W. Brooker & Co. CPAs now owns 7,075 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $420,000 after buying an additional 171 shares in the last quarter. McAdam LLC boosted its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 3.3% in the 2nd quarter. McAdam LLC now owns 5,609 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $333,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares during the period. Prentice Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 2.0% during the second quarter. Prentice Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,426 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $560,000 after buying an additional 184 shares during the last quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 13.0% in the first quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 1,617 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $94,000 after buying an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 3.4% during the second quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 5,897 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $350,000 after acquiring an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.90% of the company’s stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Price Performance

Shares of Wells Fargo & Company stock traded down $2.86 on Friday, reaching $54.00. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 21,853,782 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,798,791. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. Wells Fargo & Company has a 52-week low of $38.38 and a 52-week high of $62.55. The company has a market capitalization of $188.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.09, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.16. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $57.31 and a 200-day moving average price of $57.88.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.29 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $20.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.29 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 15.17% and a return on equity of 12.30%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.25 EPS. Analysts expect that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.15 EPS for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. This is an increase from Wells Fargo & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.96%. Wells Fargo & Company’s payout ratio is 32.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $64.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $62.00 to $59.00 in a report on Friday, August 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $65.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $62.00 to $61.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $60.29.

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.