Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Stake Lessened by Meyer Handelman Co.

Meyer Handelman Co. trimmed its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 250,804 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,500 shares during the quarter. Meyer Handelman Co.’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $17,616,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WFC. Mattson Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company in the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Modus Advisors LLC bought a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Finally, MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the third quarter worth $34,000. Institutional investors own 75.90% of the company’s stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Up 0.8 %

WFC stock opened at $71.07 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $72.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $63.15. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The company has a market capitalization of $236.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.18. Wells Fargo & Company has a 52 week low of $46.12 and a 52 week high of $78.13.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $20.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.58 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 12.25% and a net margin of 14.43%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.86 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.25%. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.26%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on WFC shares. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $71.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Phillip Securities raised shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “neutral” rating to an “accumulate” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $60.83 to $65.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $61.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Barclays raised their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $69.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $69.92.

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.