Wells Fargo shares retreat for a second straight session on Thursday, holding expands recruitment bonuses to advisers

According to sources with knowledge of the matter, Wells Fargo & Company (WFC) intends to offer more enticing recruitment bonuses to financial advisers at a time when its rivals already revealed plans to slash their recruiting budgets. Wells Fargo Advisors, the holdings wealth management division, was to boost recruiting offers by 50%, the sources, who preferred to remain anonymous, said.

Wells Fargo shares closed lower for a second straight trading session on Thursday. The stock went down 0.58% ($0.31) to $52.78, after touching an intraday low at $52.57, or a price level not seen since May 22nd ($52.50). In the week ended on May 21st the shares of the bank holding company added a mere 0.08% to their market value compared to a week ago, which marked the fourth gain in the past five weeks. However, the stock has extended its loss to 1.97% so far during the current month, following a 3.27% slump in April. The latter has been a second consecutive month of decline. For the entire past year, the shares of the NYSE-listed holding company gained 1.38%.

“Attracting the industrys top talent will always be a priority for Wells Fargo Advisors”, Emily Acquisto, a spokesperson for Wells Fargo, said in a statement, cited by Reuters. “Weve been disciplined in recruiting and it has worked for us. Adding great advisers and new clients has helped us grow in key markets.”

The increase is to be observed in the upfront bonus checks for brokers upon joining Wells Fargo and in their deferred compensation, according to a publication by the same media.

According to CNN Money, the 26 analysts, offering 12-month forecasts regarding Wells Fargo’s stock price, have a median target of $59.50, with a high estimate of $66.00 and a low estimate of $50.00. The median estimate is a 12.73% surge compared to the closing price of $52.78 on May 25th.

The same media also reported that 14 out of 31 surveyed investment analysts had rated Wells Fargo’s stock as “Hold”, while 12 – as “Buy”. On the other hand, 3 analysts had recommended selling the stock.

Daily and Weekly Pivot Levels

With the help of the Camarilla calculation method, todays levels of importance for the Wells Fargo stock are presented as follows:

R1 – $52.84
R2 – $52.90
R3 (Range Resistance – Sell) – $52.97
R4 (Long Breakout) – $53.15
R5 (Breakout Target 1) – $53.37
R6 (Breakout Target 2) – $53.46

S1 – $52.72
S2 – $52.66
S3 (Range Support – Buy) – $52.59
S4 (Short Breakout) – $52.41
S5 (Breakout Target 1) – $52.19
S6 (Breakout Target 2) – $52.10

By using the traditional method of calculation, the weekly levels of importance for Wells Fargo & Company (WFC) are presented as follows:

Central Pivot Point – $52.72
R1 – $53.78
R2 – $54.51
R3 – $55.57
R4 – $56.64

S1 – $51.99
S2 – $50.93
S3 – $50.20
S4 – $49.48