Bailard Inc. Acquires 1,843 Shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Bailard Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 25.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,164 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,843 shares during the period. Bailard Inc.’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $544,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Kovack Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. now owns 10,870 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $535,000 after acquiring an additional 590 shares during the period. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI grew its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 60.4% during the fourth quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 20,380 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,003,000 after buying an additional 7,673 shares during the last quarter. Addison Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 27.7% during the fourth quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 1,409 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $69,000 after buying an additional 306 shares in the last quarter. Consolidated Planning Corp bought a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $259,000. Finally, Convergence Investment Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 182.5% in the 4th quarter. Convergence Investment Partners LLC now owns 41,628 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,049,000 after acquiring an additional 26,891 shares in the last quarter. 75.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Up 0.1 %

NYSE WFC traded up $0.03 on Monday, reaching $56.73. The company had a trading volume of 9,477,798 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,957,906. The company’s fifty day moving average is $57.52 and its 200-day moving average is $57.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $197.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.86. Wells Fargo & Company has a 1-year low of $38.38 and a 1-year high of $62.55.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.29 by $0.04. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 12.30% and a net margin of 15.17%. The company had revenue of $20.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.29 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.25 earnings per share. Wells Fargo & Company’s revenue for the quarter was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, September 1st. Investors of record on Friday, August 9th will be given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 9th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.82%. This is an increase from Wells Fargo & Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WFC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Wells Fargo & Company to a “hold” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $62.00 to $59.00 in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Morgan Stanley upped 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 report on Tuesday, July 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on shares of 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. Evercore ISI reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $67.00 target price (down from $70.00) on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Wells Fargo & Company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $59.63.

Wells Fargo & 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.