Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Upgraded at Robert W. Baird

Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) from an underperform rating to a neutral rating in a research report released on Friday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Robert W. Baird currently has $85.00 price objective on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $100.00 price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $113.00 price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Wolfe Research reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $109.00 target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. HSBC reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $74.00 price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $99.00 to $99.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Wells Fargo & Company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $97.03.

Wells Fargo & Company Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of NYSE WFC opened at $86.94 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $91.80 and its 200-day moving average price is $85.93. The company has a market cap of $272.92 billion, a PE ratio of 13.87, a P/E/G ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.09. Wells Fargo & Company has a 52-week low of $58.42 and a 52-week high of $97.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.90.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $11.97 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.63 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 17.27% and a return on equity of 12.90%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.43 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, March 1st. Investors of record on Friday, February 6th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.71%.

Institutional Trading of Wells Fargo & Company

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Access Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Godfrey Financial Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Navalign LLC purchased a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Marquette Asset Management LLC grew its position in Wells Fargo & Company by 472.4% in the 3rd quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 332 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 274 shares during the last quarter. 75.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wells Fargo & Company Company Profile

Wells Fargo & Company is a diversified, U.S.-based financial services company headquartered in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1852 by Henry Wells and William G. Fargo, the firm has evolved from its origins in express delivery and pioneer-era banking into one of the largest full-service banks in the United States. The company provides a broad range of financial products and services to individual, small business, commercial, and institutional clients. Charles W. Scharf serves as chief executive officer.

Wells Fargo operates across several core business segments, including consumer banking and lending, commercial banking, corporate and investment banking, and wealth and investment management.