WEX (NYSE:WEX) Sees Large Volume Increase – Here’s What Happened

Shares of WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX) saw unusually-high trading volume on Wednesday . Approximately 1,020,331 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 145% from the previous session’s volume of 416,638 shares.The stock last traded at $155.22 and had previously closed at $155.59.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WEX has been the subject of several analyst reports. William Blair reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of WEX in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of WEX from $200.00 to $172.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of WEX from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Citigroup downgraded shares of 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 research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of WEX from $180.00 to $160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $195.73.

WEX Trading Down 0.2 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 1.61. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $165.84 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $181.08.

WEX (NYSE:WEX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The business services provider reported $3.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.16. WEX had a net margin of 11.78% and a return on equity of 32.35%. As a group, analysts forecast that WEX Inc. will post 14.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new position in shares of WEX during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of WEX during the third quarter valued at about $35,000. State of Wyoming acquired a new position in shares of WEX during the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its holdings in shares of WEX by 108.4% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 248 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in shares of WEX by 552.5% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 261 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 221 shares during the last quarter. 97.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About WEX

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.