WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX) Shares Purchased by Loomis Sayles & Co. L P

Loomis Sayles & Co. L P boosted its holdings in shares of WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX) by 5.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 308,065 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 16,739 shares during the quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P owned 0.77% of WEX worth $64,611,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in WEX by 206.1% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 150 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in WEX in the second quarter valued at $33,000. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in WEX by 717.4% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 188 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of WEX by 456.1% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 228 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in shares of WEX by 47.3% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 277 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.47% of the company’s stock.

WEX Stock Performance

Shares of WEX opened at $185.38 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87. WEX Inc. has a 52-week low of $165.51 and a 52-week high of $244.04. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $196.01 and a 200-day simple moving average of $187.80. The company has a market capitalization of $7.37 billion, a PE ratio of 23.53, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.57.

WEX (NYSE:WEX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The business services provider reported $4.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.82 by $0.53. The company had revenue of $665.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $688.03 million. WEX had a net margin of 12.45% and a return on equity of 31.35%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.44 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that WEX Inc. will post 13.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other WEX news, CFO Jagtar Narula sold 508 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total value of $101,600.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 7,120 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,424,000. This represents a 6.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of WEX from $200.00 to $180.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of WEX from $238.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on WEX from $285.00 to $230.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Wolfe Research downgraded WEX from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on WEX from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $235.91.

About WEX

WEX Inc operates a commerce platform in the United States and internationally. The Mobility segment offers fleet vehicle payment solutions, transaction processing, and information management services; and provides account activation and account retention services; authorization and billing inquiries, and account maintenance services; account management; credit and collections services; merchant services; analytics solutions; and ancillary services and offerings.