Key Points
- WEX director James Groch bought 1,500 shares at an average price of $142.95, a transaction worth about $214,425 and increasing his stake by 9.11%.
- Shares of WEX rose 2.1% after the disclosure, and the stock opened at $144.05 as investors digested the insider purchase and recent company news.
- WEX recently reported better-than-expected quarterly results and announced a $1 billion share repurchase program, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Hold.
WEX Inc. (NYSE:WEX - Get Free Report) Director James Groch acquired 1,500 shares of WEX stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The stock was bought at an average price of $142.95 per share, with a total value of $214,425.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 17,957 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,566,953.15. This trade represents a 9.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.
WEX Stock Up 2.1%
Shares of NYSE WEX opened at $144.05 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $154.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $153.32. WEX Inc. has a 52 week low of $128.91 and a 52 week high of $186.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.87.
WEX (NYSE:WEX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The business services provider reported $4.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.92 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $673.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $660.96 million. WEX had a net margin of 11.50% and a return on equity of 42.66%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.51 earnings per share. WEX has set its FY 2026 guidance at 18.950-19.550 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 4.930-5.130 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that WEX Inc. will post 16.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.
WEX declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Thursday, May 14th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the business services provider to buy up to 21.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of equities analysts have issued reports on WEX shares. UBS Group set a $165.00 target price on shares of WEX and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of WEX in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Raymond James Financial restated a "market perform" rating on shares of WEX in a research report on Friday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of WEX from $175.00 to $155.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of WEX from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $169.27.
View Our Latest Research Report on WEX
Institutional Investors Weigh In On WEX
A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of WEX by 1.9% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,205 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $471,000 after buying an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. grew its holdings in shares of WEX by 0.7% during the third quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 9,615 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,515,000 after buying an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of WEX by 3.0% during the third quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 2,558 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $403,000 after buying an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of WEX by 1.9% during the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,985 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $785,000 after buying an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Corp grew its holdings in shares of WEX by 65.7% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 237 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. 97.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
About WEX
(
Get Free Report)
WEX Inc is a global financial technology company specializing in business payment solutions for fleet, travel, and corporate payments. The company delivers software-driven platforms and card-based services that help businesses automate payment processes, manage expenses and improve operational efficiency across a range of industries, including transportation, healthcare and government.
Founded in 1983 as Wright Express in Portland, Maine, the company began by offering fuel card services to trucking fleets.
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