Meridian Wealth Management LLC Takes Position in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Meridian Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 8,929 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $504,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WFC. Canoe Financial LP acquired a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the third quarter valued at approximately $160,529,000. Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 3,295.6% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,331,925 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $138,493,000 after purchasing an additional 2,404,898 shares in the last quarter. Rokos Capital Management LLP grew its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 141.6% in the first quarter. Rokos Capital Management LLP now owns 2,620,868 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $151,853,000 after purchasing an additional 1,536,152 shares in the last quarter. National Pension Service grew its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 15.2% in the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 6,789,371 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $383,532,000 after purchasing an additional 897,195 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 4.4% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 19,848,290 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,178,591,000 after purchasing an additional 831,975 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.90% of the company's stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE:WFC opened at $75.96 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $252.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.14. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $63.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $59.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. Wells Fargo & Company has a 1-year low of $42.52 and a 1-year high of $76.08.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.42 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $20.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $20.40 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 14.43% and a return on equity of 12.25%. Wells Fargo & Company's quarterly revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.39 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.42 EPS for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. Wells Fargo & Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.26%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on WFC. Phillip Securities upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "neutral" rating to an "accumulate" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $60.83 to $65.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Wells Fargo & Company to a "hold" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $62.00 to $59.00 in a report on Friday, August 16th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $68.00 to $67.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $68.00 to $65.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $71.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $63.07.

Insider Transactions at Wells Fargo & Company

In other news, EVP Beurden Saul Van sold 35,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total value of $2,169,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 126,687 shares in the company, valued at $7,853,327.13. This trade represents a 21.65 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Ather Williams III sold 60,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.70, for a total transaction of $3,822,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 163,610 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,421,957. This represents a 26.83 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.08% of the company's stock.

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.

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