Wells Fargo & Company Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:WFC)

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) saw some unusual options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock traders purchased 412,749 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 402% compared to the typical volume of 82,301 call options.

Wells Fargo & Company Trading Up 0.1 %

NYSE WFC opened at $61.30 on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company has a 12-month low of $37.18 and a 12-month high of $61.76. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $57.99 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $50.70. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The stock has a market cap of $213.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.18.

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.10. Wells Fargo & Company had a return on equity of 12.30% and a net margin of 15.63%. The company had revenue of $20.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.23 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Wells Fargo & Company will post 5.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Wells Fargo & Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 10th will be issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.28%. Wells Fargo & Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.23%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com raised Wells Fargo & Company from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $58.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $63.00 price target (up previously from $57.00) on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. Raymond James lifted their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $51.00 to $50.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $58.99.

Institutional Trading of Wells Fargo & Company

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WFC. Core Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners acquired a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Fortis Group Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Finally, Transcendent Capital Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 75.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.