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Should Value Investors Choose Wells Fargo (WFC) Stock Now?
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Value investing is easily one of the most popular ways to find great stocks in any market environment. After all, who wouldn’t want to find stocks that are either flying under the radar and are compelling buys, or offer up tantalizing discounts when compared to fair value?
One way to find these companies is by looking at several key metrics and financial ratios, many of which are crucial in the value stock selection process. Let’s put Wells Fargo & Company (WFC - Free Report) stock into this equation and find out if it is a good choice for value-oriented investors right now, or if investors subscribing to this methodology should look elsewhere for top picks:
PE Ratio
A key metric that value investors always look at is the Price to Earnings Ratio, or PE for short. This shows us how much investors are willing to pay for each dollar of earnings in a given stock, and is easily one of the most popular financial ratios in the world. The best use of the PE ratio is to compare the stock’s current PE ratio with: a) where this ratio has been in the past; b) how it compares to the average for the industry/sector; and c) how it compares to the market as a whole.
On this front, Wells Fargo has a trailing twelve months PE ratio of 9.84, as you can see in the chart below:
This level actually compares favorably with the market at large, as the PE for the S&P 500 stands at about 17.8. If we focus on the long-term PE trend, Wells Fargo’s current PE level puts it above its midpoint over the past five years.
Further, the stock’s PE also compares pretty favorably with the Zacks - Finance sector’s trailing twelve months PE ratio, which stands at 13.66. At the very least, this indicates that the stock is relatively undervalued right now, compared to its peers.
We should also point out that Wells Fargo has a forward PE ratio (price relative to this year’s earnings) of just 9.62, so it is fair to say that a slightly more value-oriented path may be ahead for ABCB stock in the near term too.
P/S Ratio
Another key metric to note is the Price/Sales ratio. This approach compares a given stock’s price to its total sales, where a lower reading is generally considered better. Some people like this metric more than other value-focused ones because it looks at sales, something that is far harder to manipulate with accounting tricks than earnings.
Right now, Wells Fargo has a P/S ratio of about 2.04. This is lower than the S&P 500 average, which comes in at 3.2x right now. Also, as we can see in the chart below, this is well below the highs for this stock in particular over the past few years.
If anything, this suggests some level of undervalued trading—at least compared to historical norms.
Broad Value Outlook
In aggregate, Wells Fargo currently has a Value Score of A, putting it into the top 20% of all stocks we cover from this look. This makes the stock a solid choice for value investors, and some of its other key metrics make this pretty clear too.
For example, its P/CF ratio comes in at 9.62, which is far better than the industry average of 10.90. Clearly, the stock is a solid choice on the value front from multiple angles.
What About the Stock Overall?
Though WFC might be a good choice for value investors, there are plenty of other factors to consider before investing in this name. In particular, it is worth noting that the company has a Growth Score of D and a Momentum Score of C. This gives WFC a Zacks VGM score — or its overarching fundamental grade — of B. (You can read more about the Zacks Style Scores here >>)
Meanwhile, the company’s recent earnings estimates have been disappointing. The current quarter has seen six downward revisions with two upward movement in the past sixty days. For the full year, the estimate has seen nine downward revisions in the same time period with one movement in the opposite direction.
This has had an impact on the consensus estimate as the current quarter consensus estimate has decreased 3.3% in the past two months, while the full year estimate has plunged 4.4%. You can see the consensus estimate trend and recent price action for the stock in the chart below:
Despite the bearish analyst sentiments, the stock holds a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Thus, we are looking for in-line performance from the company in the near term.
Bottom Line
Wells Fargo is an inspired choice for value investors, as it is hard to beat its incredible lineup of statistics on this front.
However, with a sluggish industry rank (among Bottom 41% of more than 250 industries) and a Zacks Rank #3, it is hard to get too excited about this company overall. In fact, over the past two years, the Zacks Major Regional Banks industry has clearly underperformed the market at large, as you can see below:
So, value investors might want to wait for estimates, analyst sentiment and favorable industry factors to turn around in this name first, but once that happens, this stock could be a compelling pick.
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One out of every six people retires a multimillionaire. Get smart tips you can do today to become one of them in a new Special Report, “7 Things You Can Do Now to Retire a Multimillionaire.”
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Should Value Investors Choose Wells Fargo (WFC) Stock Now?
Value investing is easily one of the most popular ways to find great stocks in any market environment. After all, who wouldn’t want to find stocks that are either flying under the radar and are compelling buys, or offer up tantalizing discounts when compared to fair value?
One way to find these companies is by looking at several key metrics and financial ratios, many of which are crucial in the value stock selection process. Let’s put Wells Fargo & Company (WFC - Free Report) stock into this equation and find out if it is a good choice for value-oriented investors right now, or if investors subscribing to this methodology should look elsewhere for top picks:
PE Ratio
A key metric that value investors always look at is the Price to Earnings Ratio, or PE for short. This shows us how much investors are willing to pay for each dollar of earnings in a given stock, and is easily one of the most popular financial ratios in the world. The best use of the PE ratio is to compare the stock’s current PE ratio with: a) where this ratio has been in the past; b) how it compares to the average for the industry/sector; and c) how it compares to the market as a whole.
On this front, Wells Fargo has a trailing twelve months PE ratio of 9.84, as you can see in the chart below:
This level actually compares favorably with the market at large, as the PE for the S&P 500 stands at about 17.8. If we focus on the long-term PE trend, Wells Fargo’s current PE level puts it above its midpoint over the past five years.
Further, the stock’s PE also compares pretty favorably with the Zacks - Finance sector’s trailing twelve months PE ratio, which stands at 13.66. At the very least, this indicates that the stock is relatively undervalued right now, compared to its peers.
We should also point out that Wells Fargo has a forward PE ratio (price relative to this year’s earnings) of just 9.62, so it is fair to say that a slightly more value-oriented path may be ahead for ABCB stock in the near term too.
P/S Ratio
Another key metric to note is the Price/Sales ratio. This approach compares a given stock’s price to its total sales, where a lower reading is generally considered better. Some people like this metric more than other value-focused ones because it looks at sales, something that is far harder to manipulate with accounting tricks than earnings.
Right now, Wells Fargo has a P/S ratio of about 2.04. This is lower than the S&P 500 average, which comes in at 3.2x right now. Also, as we can see in the chart below, this is well below the highs for this stock in particular over the past few years.
If anything, this suggests some level of undervalued trading—at least compared to historical norms.
Broad Value Outlook
In aggregate, Wells Fargo currently has a Value Score of A, putting it into the top 20% of all stocks we cover from this look. This makes the stock a solid choice for value investors, and some of its other key metrics make this pretty clear too.
For example, its P/CF ratio comes in at 9.62, which is far better than the industry average of 10.90. Clearly, the stock is a solid choice on the value front from multiple angles.
What About the Stock Overall?
Though WFC might be a good choice for value investors, there are plenty of other factors to consider before investing in this name. In particular, it is worth noting that the company has a Growth Score of D and a Momentum Score of C. This gives WFC a Zacks VGM score — or its overarching fundamental grade — of B. (You can read more about the Zacks Style Scores here >>)
Meanwhile, the company’s recent earnings estimates have been disappointing. The current quarter has seen six downward revisions with two upward movement in the past sixty days. For the full year, the estimate has seen nine downward revisions in the same time period with one movement in the opposite direction.
This has had an impact on the consensus estimate as the current quarter consensus estimate has decreased 3.3% in the past two months, while the full year estimate has plunged 4.4%. You can see the consensus estimate trend and recent price action for the stock in the chart below:
Wells Fargo & Company Price and Consensus
Wells Fargo & Company price-consensus-chart | Wells Fargo & Company Quote
Despite the bearish analyst sentiments, the stock holds a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Thus, we are looking for in-line performance from the company in the near term.
Bottom Line
Wells Fargo is an inspired choice for value investors, as it is hard to beat its incredible lineup of statistics on this front.
However, with a sluggish industry rank (among Bottom 41% of more than 250 industries) and a Zacks Rank #3, it is hard to get too excited about this company overall. In fact, over the past two years, the Zacks Major Regional Banks industry has clearly underperformed the market at large, as you can see below:
So, value investors might want to wait for estimates, analyst sentiment and favorable industry factors to turn around in this name first, but once that happens, this stock could be a compelling pick.
Will you retire a millionaire?
One out of every six people retires a multimillionaire. Get smart tips you can do today to become one of them in a new Special Report, “7 Things You Can Do Now to Retire a Multimillionaire.”
Click to get it free >>