Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky Raises Stake in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC)

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lifted its position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 105.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,010,101 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 518,524 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company accounts for approximately 0.5% of Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest holding. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky’s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $57,060,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Two Sigma Advisers LP grew its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company by 730.4% in the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 5,954,600 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $336,375,000 after buying an additional 5,237,500 shares during the period. Canoe Financial LP acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company during the third quarter worth approximately $160,529,000. Marshall Wace LLP grew its stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 3,295.6% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,331,925 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $138,493,000 after buying an additional 2,404,898 shares during the period. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec grew its position in Wells Fargo & Company by 158.1% during the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 2,709,659 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $153,069,000 after acquiring an additional 1,659,716 shares during the period. Finally, National Pension Service raised its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 15.2% in the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 6,789,371 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $383,532,000 after purchasing an additional 897,195 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Beurden Saul Van sold 35,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total transaction of $2,169,650.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 126,687 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,853,327.13. This trade represents a 21.65 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Ather Williams III sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.70, for a total value of $3,822,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 163,610 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,421,957. This trade represents a 26.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wells Fargo & Company Stock Down 0.8 %

WFC stock opened at $72.05 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $239.89 billion, a PE ratio of 14.98, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.16. Wells Fargo & Company has a 12 month low of $45.57 and a 12 month high of $78.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $67.71 and a 200 day simple moving average of $60.88.

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

Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.26%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on WFC shares. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $69.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Citigroup upped their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $67.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Wells Fargo & Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $65.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $61.00 price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $61.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $67.49.

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.