Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 537,470 Shares of WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX)

Vanguard Group Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX) by 14.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 3,240,495 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 537,470 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 9.46% of WEX worth $508,823,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of WEX. Factorial Partners LLC grew its holdings in WEX by 115.8% in the first quarter. Factorial Partners LLC now owns 24,600 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,863,000 after purchasing an additional 13,200 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd boosted its holdings in WEX by 3,180.0% during the first quarter. R Squared Ltd now owns 1,640 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $258,000 after purchasing an additional 1,590 shares during the last quarter. Clark Estates Inc. NY boosted its holdings in WEX by 8.4% during the first quarter. Clark Estates Inc. NY now owns 13,300 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,088,000 after purchasing an additional 1,036 shares during the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new position in WEX in the first quarter valued at about $2,178,000. Finally, LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in WEX by 4.3% in the first quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 30,667 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,815,000 after acquiring an additional 1,259 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.47% of the company’s stock.

WEX Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of NYSE WEX opened at $175.32 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.99. WEX Inc. has a 12 month low of $110.45 and a 12 month high of $217.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.01 billion, a PE ratio of 22.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.28. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $155.31 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $148.23.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on WEX shares. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of WEX from $150.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of WEX from $138.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of WEX from $142.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. William Blair reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of WEX in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Oppenheimer assumed coverage on shares of WEX in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, WEX has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $181.50.

Insider Activity at WEX

In other WEX news, CEO Melissa D. Smith purchased 3,721 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 29th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $134.57 per share, for a total transaction of $500,734.97. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 101,182 shares in the company, valued at $13,616,061.74. The trade was a 3.82% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Ann Elena Drew sold 1,931 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.69, for a total transaction of $331,533.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 7,295 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,252,478.55. The trade was a 20.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 4,206 shares of company stock valued at $665,265 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.40% 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.