Janus Henderson Group PLC Acquires 25,365 Shares of WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX)

Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its holdings in WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX) by 0.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,163,678 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 25,365 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC owned about 10.47% of WEX worth $873,251,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in WEX. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of WEX by 206.1% in the 3rd 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 during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of WEX in the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. Quarry LP grew its position in shares of WEX by 717.4% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 188 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of WEX by 456.1% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 228 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares during the period. Finally, Covestor Ltd grew its position 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 period. Institutional investors own 97.47% of the company’s stock.

WEX Stock Performance

Shares of WEX stock opened at $189.31 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $194.12 and its 200-day moving average is $187.10. The firm has a market cap of $7.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.57. WEX Inc. has a one year low of $165.51 and a one year high of $244.04.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Insider Transactions at WEX

In related news, CFO Jagtar Narula sold 508 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $101,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 7,120 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,424,000. This trade represents a 6.66 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

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.