Rice Hall James & Associates LLC Purchases 134,099 Shares of WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX)

Rice Hall James & Associates LLC lifted its position in WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX) by 672.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 154,033 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 134,099 shares during the quarter. WEX accounts for approximately 1.7% of Rice Hall James & Associates LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC owned approximately 0.39% of WEX worth $32,305,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in WEX during the 2nd quarter valued at $33,000. Quarry LP grew its stake in WEX by 717.4% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 188 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in WEX by 456.1% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 228 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd lifted its position in shares of WEX by 233.9% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 187 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fidelis Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of WEX in the 1st quarter valued at about $60,000. 97.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

WEX Stock Performance

WEX opened at $172.60 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $199.35 and a two-hundred day moving average of $192.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.87 billion, a PE ratio of 21.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87. WEX Inc. has a 12-month low of $162.97 and a 12-month high of $244.04.

WEX (NYSE:WEX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The business services provider reported $4.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.82 by $0.53. WEX had a net margin of 12.45% and a return on equity of 31.35%. The firm had revenue of $665.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $688.03 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.44 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that WEX Inc. will post 13.2 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on WEX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of WEX from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on WEX from $285.00 to $230.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on WEX from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Wolfe Research cut WEX from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on WEX from $200.00 to $180.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, WEX currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $235.91.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Jagtar Narula sold 508 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $101,600.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 7,120 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,424,000. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, COO Robert Joseph Deshaies sold 1,651 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.67, for a total transaction of $299,937.17. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 7,757 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,409,214.19. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Jagtar Narula sold 508 shares of WEX stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total value of $101,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 7,120 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,424,000. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

WEX Profile

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.