WEX (NYSE:WEX) Given Market Perform Rating at William Blair

William Blair restated their market perform rating on shares of WEX (NYSE:WEX) in a report released on Thursday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports.

A number of other research firms have also issued reports on WEX. Citigroup lowered WEX from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $260.00 to $190.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Bank of America cut shares of WEX from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of WEX from $247.00 to $220.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Barclays reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $200.00 price target (down previously from $207.00) on shares of WEX in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on WEX from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $217.73.

WEX Stock Down 18.8 %

WEX stock opened at $151.60 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $178.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $185.99. The stock has a market cap of $6.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.24, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.58. WEX has a 52 week low of $149.29 and a 52 week high of $244.04. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87.

WEX (NYSE:WEX) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The business services provider reported $3.13 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.16. WEX had a return on equity of 31.35% and a net margin of 12.45%. On average, analysts expect that WEX will post 13.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at WEX

In other news, COO Robert Joseph Deshaies sold 175 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.44, for a total value of $33,152.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 7,582 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,436,334.08. This represents a 2.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of WEX by 206.1% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 150 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in WEX during the third quarter valued at $35,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in WEX by 108.4% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 248 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in WEX by 552.5% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 261 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 221 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd raised its stake in shares of WEX by 47.3% during the 3rd 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. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.47% of the company’s stock.

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.