Empower Advisory Group LLC Boosts Holdings in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Empower Advisory Group LLC boosted its position in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Free Report) by 11.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 79,608 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring 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 hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Canoe Financial LP purchased a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the third quarter valued at approximately $160,529,000. Marshall Wace LLP increased its stake in 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 during the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 67.1% in the first quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 5,852,764 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $339,226,000 after purchasing an additional 2,349,595 shares during the last quarter. Rokos Capital Management LLP increased its stake in 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 38.1% during 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 acquiring an additional 1,415,647 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.90% of the company's stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Price Performance

Wells Fargo & Company stock traded up $0.03 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $72.80. The company's stock had a trading volume of 13,653,483 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,123,094. Wells Fargo & Company has a fifty-two week low of $41.99 and a fifty-two week high of $74.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $60.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $59.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $242.39 billion, a PE ratio of 15.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.14.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, October 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.42 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $20.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 quarterly revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.39 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.42 earnings per share 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.20%. 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 equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Phillip Securities upgraded 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 research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Morgan Stanley lowered 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. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $68.00 to $65.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $65.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $61.00 target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $62.12.

Insider Transactions at Wells Fargo & Company

In related news, EVP Ather Williams III sold 60,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.70, for a total value 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 approximately $10,421,957. The trade was a 26.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Beurden Saul Van sold 35,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 126,687 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,853,327.13. The trade was a 21.65 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.08% of the company's stock.

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.