KBC Group NV Raises Stock Holdings in WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX)

KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in shares of WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX) by 13.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,187 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 137 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV’s holdings in WEX were worth $249,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of WEX by 290.7% during the third quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 14,280 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,995,000 after buying an additional 10,625 shares in the last quarter. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd grew its holdings in WEX by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd now owns 34,770 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $7,292,000 after acquiring an additional 678 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its stake 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 purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. lifted its position in shares of WEX by 21.6% during the third quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 3,218 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $675,000 after purchasing an additional 572 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd grew its stake in WEX by 47.3% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 277 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. 97.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

WEX Stock Performance

WEX opened at $178.38 on Wednesday. WEX Inc. has a 1-year low of $165.51 and a 1-year high of $244.04. The company has a market capitalization of $7.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.57. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $196.74 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $188.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04.

WEX (NYSE:WEX) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 firm had revenue of $665.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $688.03 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.44 earnings per share. WEX’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that WEX Inc. will post 13.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Jagtar Narula sold 508 shares of WEX stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total value of $101,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 7,120 shares in the company, valued at $1,424,000. The trade was a 6.66 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on WEX shares. Bank of America upped their price objective on WEX from $238.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of WEX from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of WEX from $200.00 to $180.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of WEX from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of WEX from $285.00 to $230.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $235.91.

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.