Natixis Advisors LLC Trims Stake in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Natixis Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) by 12.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,521,579 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 343,997 shares during the quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.08% of Wells Fargo & Company worth $142,444,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Cardinal Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 2.0% during the third quarter. Cardinal Capital Management Inc. now owns 575,419 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $32,505,000 after buying an additional 11,037 shares in the last quarter. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC grew its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 16.4% during the third quarter. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC now owns 132,829 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,504,000 after purchasing an additional 18,717 shares during the last quarter. Argus Investors Counsel Inc. lifted its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 34.6% during the 3rd quarter. Argus Investors Counsel Inc. now owns 31,514 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,780,000 after purchasing an additional 8,107 shares during the last quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 111.1% during the 3rd quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 34,464 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,947,000 after purchasing an additional 18,138 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 382,717 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $21,620,000 after buying an additional 20,149 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.90% of the company's stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Up 2.1 %

Shares of WFC traded up $1.54 on Friday, hitting $74.34. The company's stock had a trading volume of 18,836,977 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,126,145. The firm has a market capitalization of $247.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. Wells Fargo & Company has a fifty-two week low of $41.99 and a fifty-two week high of $74.41. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $61.17 and its 200-day moving average price is $59.30.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.42 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.14. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 14.43% and a return on equity of 12.25%. The company had revenue of $20.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.40 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.39 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.42 EPS for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.15%. Wells Fargo & Company's payout ratio is currently 33.26%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on WFC. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $68.00 to $67.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Compass Point raised their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $57.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Jefferies Financial Group cut Wells Fargo & Company to a "hold" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $62.00 to $59.00 in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Wells Fargo & Company from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $65.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $61.00 price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Wells Fargo & Company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $62.12.

Insider Activity

In other Wells Fargo & Company news, EVP Ather Williams III sold 60,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 in the company, valued at approximately $10,421,957. This trade represents a 26.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Beurden Saul Van sold 35,000 shares of Wells Fargo & Company stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total transaction of $2,169,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 126,687 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,853,327.13. This trade represents a 21.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.