Artisan Partners Limited Partnership Boosts Stock Holdings in Wells Fargo & Company $WFC

Artisan Partners Limited Partnership grew its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 2,507,971 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 41,942 shares during the quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $210,218,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Access Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Marquette Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Wells Fargo & Company by 472.4% during the third quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 332 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 274 shares in the last quarter. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Kilter Group LLC purchased a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the second quarter valued at about $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WFC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $100.00 price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Thursday, January 15th. HSBC restated a “hold” rating and issued a $74.00 target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. CICC Research began coverage on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $96.00 price target on the stock. Barclays increased their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $94.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $92.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $97.03.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Kleber Santos sold 25,000 shares of Wells Fargo & Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.72, for a total transaction of $2,193,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 79,876 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,006,722.72. The trade was a 23.84% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Down 0.5%

NYSE:WFC opened at $86.29 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $90.96 and its 200-day moving average price is $86.37. Wells Fargo & Company has a 1-year low of $58.42 and a 1-year high of $97.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $266.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.76, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.09.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $21.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.43 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Dividend Announcement

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

Key Stories Impacting Wells Fargo & Company

Here are the key news stories impacting Wells Fargo & Company this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Hedge funds and analyst sentiment remain constructive — WFC is listed among top banking picks and coverage is moderately bullish (roughly half the analysts rate it Buy), which supports investor demand. What Do Further Rate Cuts Mean for Wells Fargo & Company (WFC)
• Positive Sentiment: Short interest fell sharply in February (down ~16.7% to ~26.7M shares, ~0.8% of float), reducing potential short-covering volatility and downward pressure on the stock. (Short-interest ratio ≈ 1.7 days.)
• Positive Sentiment: Management change in business banking — Wells Fargo named Devine to lead Business Banking, a move that could help execution in a key revenue segment. Wells Fargo Names Devine to Lead Business Banking
• Neutral Sentiment: Wells Fargo will fully redeem its Series BB preferred shares (140,400 shares) in mid‑March — a small-capital-structure change that removes a preferred tranche but uses cash; net impact on common equity depends on funding and capital priorities. Full Redemption of Series BB Preferred Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Wells Fargo research activity (analyst notes and sector coverage) is active — the firm is publishing rate/price updates on other companies and issuing sector views that can influence institutional flows but are indirect to WFC’s fundamentals. Wells Fargo Raises Aflac Target, Revises Outlook
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader demographic tailwinds (rising U.S. investable assets, wealth transfer) are positive for long-term deposit/investment flows but are not an immediate catalyst. Women’s wealth is expected to boom
• Negative Sentiment: Wells Fargo has underperformed the Nasdaq over the past year, a performance gap that can deter momentum investors and ETFs that favor stronger relative performers. Is Wells Fargo Stock Underperforming the Nasdaq?
• Negative Sentiment: Competitor pressure: HSBC recently leapfrogged Wells Fargo by market cap after an upbeat report, highlighting competitive and perception risks for WFC among global banks. HSBC leapfrogs Wells Fargo by market cap
• Negative Sentiment: Relative upside debate vs. peers — some analysts argue Bank of America may offer stronger earnings/IB momentum and valuation upside, which could shift investor allocation away from WFC. Bank of America or Wells Fargo: Which Big Bank Offers More Upside?

Wells Fargo & 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.