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Wells Fargo (WFC) Gains But Lags Market: What You Should Know

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In the latest trading session, Wells Fargo (WFC - Free Report) closed at $24.55, marking a +0.37% move from the previous day. This move lagged the S&P 500's daily gain of 0.78%. Meanwhile, the Dow gained 0.68%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, added 1.44%.

Heading into today, shares of the biggest U.S. mortgage lender had lost 25.04% over the past month, lagging the Finance sector's loss of 7.76% and the S&P 500's loss of 1.32% in that time.

Investors will be hoping for strength from WFC as it approaches its next earnings release, which is expected to be July 14, 2020. The company is expected to report EPS of $0.06, down 95.38% from the prior-year quarter. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $18.02 billion, down 16.51% from the year-ago period.

For the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $0.64 per share and revenue of $72.83 billion, which would represent changes of -85.39% and -14.38%, respectively, from the prior year.

Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for WFC. These revisions help to show the ever-changing nature of near-term business trends. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the company's business and profitability.

Research indicates that these estimate revisions are directly correlated with near-term share price momentum. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 17.46% lower. WFC is currently a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

In terms of valuation, WFC is currently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 38.34. This valuation marks a premium compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 16.37.

Also, we should mention that WFC has a PEG ratio of 3.76. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. Banks - Major Regional stocks are, on average, holding a PEG ratio of 2.56 based on yesterday's closing prices.

The Banks - Major Regional industry is part of the Finance sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 94, which puts it in the top 38% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank includes is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

To follow WFC in the coming trading sessions, be sure to utilize Zacks.com.


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