StockNews.com Downgrades WEX (NYSE:WEX) to Hold

StockNews.com downgraded shares of WEX (NYSE:WEX) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of WEX from $240.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of WEX from $205.00 to $239.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. TheStreet raised shares of WEX from a c rating to a b rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. William Blair reaffirmed an outperform rating on shares of WEX in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of WEX from $185.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $230.77.

WEX Price Performance

WEX stock opened at $237.53 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $220.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $198.23. WEX has a 12-month low of $161.95 and a 12-month high of $239.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.56, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55.

WEX (NYSE:WEX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The business services provider reported $3.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.29 by ($0.15). WEX had a net margin of 10.46% and a return on equity of 31.33%. The firm had revenue of $663.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $656.75 million. As a group, equities analysts predict that WEX will post 13.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at WEX

In other news, CEO Melissa D. Smith sold 41,107 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.00, for a total value of $8,426,935.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 81,998 shares in the company, valued at $16,809,590. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, insider Ann Elena Drew sold 4,531 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $218.03, for a total transaction of $987,893.93. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,653 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $796,463.59. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Melissa D. Smith sold 41,107 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.00, for a total transaction of $8,426,935.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 81,998 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,809,590. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 69,433 shares of company stock worth $14,708,896. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new position in shares of WEX during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of WEX by 74.7% during the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 145 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of WEX during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of WEX during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its holdings in WEX by 79.8% during the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 169 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. 97.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

WEX Company Profile

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.