Empower Advisory Group LLC Acquires 8,222 Shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Empower Advisory Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) by 11.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 79,608 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 8,222 shares during the quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC's holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $4,497,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in WFC. Canoe Financial LP purchased a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $160,529,000. Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 3,295.6% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,331,925 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $138,493,000 after acquiring an additional 2,404,898 shares in the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. increased its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 67.1% in the 1st quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 5,852,764 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $339,226,000 after purchasing an additional 2,349,595 shares during the last quarter. Rokos Capital Management LLP raised its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 141.6% in the 1st 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. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 38.1% in the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 5,131,320 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $297,411,000 after purchasing an additional 1,415,647 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.90% of the company's stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance

WFC opened at $72.99 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The firm has a market cap of $243.02 billion, a PE ratio of 15.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.14. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $60.45 and a 200-day simple moving average of $59.11. Wells Fargo & Company has a fifty-two week low of $41.99 and a fifty-two week high of $74.27.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $20.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.40 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 12.25% and a net margin of 14.43%. Wells Fargo & Company's revenue for the quarter was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.39 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. Wells Fargo & Company's dividend payout ratio is 33.26%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Ather Williams III sold 60,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.70, for a total value of $3,822,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 163,610 shares in the company, valued at $10,421,957. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Wells Fargo & Company news, EVP Ather Williams III sold 60,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.70, for a total transaction of $3,822,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 163,610 shares in the company, valued at $10,421,957. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Beurden Saul Van sold 35,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total value of $2,169,650.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 126,687 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,853,327.13. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.08% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on WFC shares. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective 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. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $68.00 to $67.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 30th. Phillip Securities upgraded Wells Fargo & Company from a "neutral" rating to an "accumulate" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $60.83 to $65.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $61.00 price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $65.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Thirteen investment 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, Wells Fargo & Company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $62.12.

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.