Wells Fargo (WFC, $48.42) Shelled Out a Record $7.4 Billion in Share Buybacks, After Struggling With Scandal Over Two Years
Embroiled in scandals over recent years, Wells Fargo has been apparently trying to shake up its organization and appease shareholders. In the third quarter, the bank showered $7.4 billion towards share buybacks, which is nearly triple the amount it spent the year before.
In September 2016, Wells Fargo got itself in a controversy after announcing that it had fired 5,300 employees over several years for creating millions of fake accounts. Since then, Wells Fargo has spent an average of $3.2 billion each quarter on share repurchases, according to a CNN Business review of company filings. That’s 45% higher than what the bank typically spent during the prior eight quarters.
A company’s stock buyback lowers the count of its outstanding shares, and therefore potentially jacks up the company’s earnings per share (EPS). A higher EPS is usually attractive to investors, and is therefore expected to boost the stock’s demand. With its shares down -24% in the past year amidst scandals, Wells Fargo seems to have increasingly relied on share buybacks in hopes of bolstering its stock price.
Wells Fargo is also slashing jobs - apparently to deal with the shift in consumer preference to digital banking. In September, the company announced plans to cut as many as 26,500 jobs over three years.
The bank underwent a -3% drop in deposits in the third quarter on a year-over-year basis, as consumers and businesses held lower balances. It was also hurt by reduced mortgages, while several other big banks like JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup experienced positively solid loan growth in the third quarter.
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Sergey Savastiouk, Ph.D. has a degree in Applied Mathematics from Moscow University and has extensive experience as an entrepreneur, investor, manager, and mathematician. His professional expertise is in applied mathematics, mathematical modeling, system and pattern analysis, and software and hardware system integration. He has served as the CEO of several hi-tech start-up companies and nonprofit organizations, which has given him proven capabilities in business strategy for high-tech start-up companies, market assessment, company formation, team building, product development, marketing, and sales. He has published numerous articles in journals and magazines on related fields. As a retail investor, he spent 15 years developing his proprietary trading and quantitative algorithms (now Tickeron’s A.I.), which brought him significant returns in trading the stock market. His current work and goal in founding Tickeron is to bring professional, sophisticated stock market analysis capabilities to retail investors via an easy-to-use interface.
WFC in upward trend: price rose above 50-day moving average on August 28, 2026
WFC moved above its 50-day moving average on August 28, 2026 date and that indicates a change from a downward trend to an upward trend. In 33 of 41 similar past instances, the stock price increased further within the following month. The odds of a continued upward trend are 80%.
Technical Analysis (Indicators)
Bullish Trend Analysis
The Momentum Indicator moved above the 0 level on September 02, 2026. You may want to consider a long position or call options on WFC as a result. In 53 of 78 past instances where the momentum indicator moved above 0, the stock continued to climb. The odds of a continued upward trend are 68%.
The Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) for WFC just turned positive on September 02, 2026. Looking at past instances where WFC's MACD turned positive, the stock continued to rise in 32 of 46 cases over the following month. The odds of a continued upward trend are 70%.
The 10-day moving average for WFC crossed bullishly above the 50-day moving average on September 04, 2026. This indicates that the trend has shifted higher and could be considered a buy signal. In 14 of 18 past instances when the 10-day crossed above the 50-day, the stock continued to move higher over the following month. The odds of a continued upward trend are 78%.
The 50-day moving average for WFC moved above the 200-day moving average on August 06, 2026. This could be a long-term bullish signal for the stock as the stock shifts to an upward trend.
Following a +3.33% 3-day Advance, the price is estimated to grow further. Considering data from situations where WFC advanced for three days, in 206 of 331 cases, the price rose further within the following month. The odds of a continued upward trend are 62%.
WFC may jump back above the lower band and head toward the middle band. Traders may consider buying the stock or exploring call options.
Bearish Trend Analysis
The Stochastic Oscillator demonstrated that the ticker has stayed in the overbought zone for 6 days. The longer the ticker stays in the overbought zone, the sooner a price pull-back is expected.
Following a 3-day decline, the stock is projected to fall further. Considering past instances where WFC declined for three days, the price rose further in 50 of 62 cases within the following month. The odds of a continued downward trend are 58%.
Fundamental Analysis (Ratings)
The Tickeron SMR rating for this company is 2 (best 1 - 100 worst), indicating very strong sales and a profitable business model. SMR (Sales, Margin, Return on Equity) rating is based on comparative analysis of weighted Sales, Income Margin and Return on Equity values compared against S&P 500 index constituents. The weighted SMR value is a proprietary formula developed by Tickeron and represents an overall profitability measure for a stock.
The Tickeron Profit vs. Risk Rating rating for this company is 20 (best 1 - 100 worst), indicating low risk on high returns. The average Profit vs. Risk Rating rating for the industry is 19, placing this stock worse than average.
The Tickeron Price Growth Rating for this company is 32 (best 1 - 100 worst), indicating outstanding price growth. WFC’s price grows at a higher rate over the last 12 months as compared to S&P 500 index constituents.
The Tickeron PE Growth Rating for this company is 48 (best 1 - 100 worst), pointing to average earnings growth. The PE Growth rating is based on a comparative analysis of stock PE ratio increase over the last 12 months compared against S&P 500 index constituents.
The Tickeron Seasonality Score of 50 (best 1 - 100 worst) indicates that the company is fair valued in the industry. The Tickeron Seasonality score describes the variance of predictable price changes around the same period every calendar year. These changes can be tied to a specific month, quarter, holiday or vacation period, as well as a meteorological or growing season.
The Tickeron Valuation Rating of 65 (best 1 - 100 worst) indicates that the company is fair valued in the industry. This rating compares market capitalization estimated by our proprietary formula with the current market capitalization. This rating is based on the following metrics, as compared to industry averages: P/B Ratio (1.656) is normal, around the industry mean (1.928). P/E Ratio (13.124) is within average values for comparable stocks, (15.436). Projected Growth (PEG Ratio) (1.527) is also within normal values, averaging (1.358). Dividend Yield (0.021) settles around the average of (0.025) among similar stocks. P/S Ratio (3.261) is also within normal values, averaging (3.980).
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a major bank
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