Natixis Makes New Investment in WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX)

Natixis purchased a new stake in WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 6,339 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,111,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of WEX. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in WEX by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,283 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $225,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of WEX by 25.3% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 327 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Xponance Inc. raised its holdings in shares of WEX by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 4,864 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $853,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its position in shares of WEX by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 11,175 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,959,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of WEX by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 1,686 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $296,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. 97.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on WEX. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on WEX from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Citigroup downgraded WEX from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $260.00 to $190.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Robert W. Baird set a $186.00 price objective on shares of WEX in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of WEX from $215.00 to $170.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on shares of WEX from $200.00 to $155.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $185.80.

WEX Stock Performance

WEX stock traded up $0.78 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $130.69. 358,739 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 549,527. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.07, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.02. The firm has a market cap of $4.48 billion, a PE ratio of 17.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 1.33. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $144.15 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $167.68. WEX Inc. has a twelve month low of $110.45 and a twelve month high of $220.32.

WEX (NYSE:WEX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The business services provider reported $3.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.16. WEX had a return on equity of 32.35% and a net margin of 11.78%. Equities analysts predict that WEX Inc. will post 14.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WEX Company 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.