Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) Shares Sold by Mizuho Securities USA LLC

Mizuho Securities USA LLC trimmed its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 17.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 220,716 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 48,093 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $12,468,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 252,386 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $14,257,000 after purchasing an additional 4,061 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the 3rd quarter worth $471,000. Trustmark National Bank Trust Department grew its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 13.9% during the 3rd quarter. Trustmark National Bank Trust Department now owns 4,813 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $272,000 after acquiring an additional 587 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 33.6% during the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 135,555 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,658,000 after acquiring an additional 34,068 shares in the last quarter. Finally, King Luther Capital Management Corp grew its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 85,680 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,840,000 after acquiring an additional 1,200 shares in the last quarter. 75.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on WFC. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective 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. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $67.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $65.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Wells Fargo & Company to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $62.00 to $59.00 in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $61.00 price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Thirteen research 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $63.07.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Beurden Saul Van sold 35,000 shares of Wells Fargo & Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The shares were 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 directly owns 126,687 shares in the company, valued at $7,853,327.13. This trade represents a 21.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Ather Williams III sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.70, for a total transaction of $3,822,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 163,610 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,421,957. This represents a 26.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Wells Fargo & Company Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of Wells Fargo & Company stock opened at $73.58 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $244.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.14. 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 company has a 50-day simple moving average of $62.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $59.59. Wells Fargo & Company has a 12-month low of $42.15 and a 12-month high of $74.70.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 11th. The financial services provider reported $1.42 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.14. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 14.43% and a return on equity of 12.25%. The firm had revenue of $20.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.40 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.39 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.26%.

About Wells Fargo & Company

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.