Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Trading Down 2.9% - Here's Why

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)'s share price was down 2.9% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $70.07 and last traded at $70.17. Approximately 3,476,885 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 79% from the average daily volume of 16,328,833 shares. The stock had previously closed at $72.28.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WFC has been the subject of several analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $72.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $82.00 to $78.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Barclays raised their price target on Wells Fargo & Company from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Compass Point increased their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $60.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $75.55.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Down 7.5 %

The firm has a market cap of $218.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $75.50 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $70.43.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $20.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $20.58 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 12.38% and a net margin of 15.73%. The company's quarterly revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.86 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 7th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.74%.

Institutional Trading of Wells Fargo & Company

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WFC. Rialto Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Investment Counsel Co. of Nevada acquired a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. BNP Paribas bought a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Modus Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Finally, McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 75.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wells Fargo & Company Company Profile

Wells Fargo & Co is a diversified and community-based financial services company, which engages in the provision of banking, insurance, investments, mortgage, and consumer and commercial finance products and services. It operates through the following segments: Consumer Banking and Lending, Commercial Banking, Corporate and Investment Banking, and Wealth and Investment Management.