Who Owns Wells Fargo?

The story of who owns Wells Fargo (WFC -0.56%) reads like an American history lesson. It begins with the rise and fall of stagecoach transportation and continues to modern-day corporate mergers and scandals. From humble beginnings, Wells Fargo has grown into a diversified financial services company that manages $1.9 trillion in assets and ranks 47th on Fortune's 2023 list of America's largest corporations.

Read on for the Wells Fargo ownership story, from start-up courier to publicly traded company. You'll also learn who WFC's largest shareholders are today, who's on the board of directors, and how to invest your cash in the company.

Who owns Wells Fargo?

Who is the owner of Wells Fargo?

As a public company, Wells Fargo is collectively owned by its shareholders. Institutional investors own roughly 76% of WFC's outstanding shares, while insiders own about 0.08%. The institutional investors are mainly mutual fund managers, and the insiders are WFC officers. Specifics on the largest institutional and insider owners are provided in the section below.

WFC has traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) since 1962. The IPO was 110 years after the company's founding, when frontier-era entrepreneurs William Fargo and Henry Wells decided to provide courier and banking services to the West Coast during the California Gold Rush.

Fargo and Wells initially pitched the West Coast market to American Express (AXP 0.07%), the other company they helped establish. American Express declined, so the pair independently launched Wells, Fargo & Co. The business grew quickly through the expansion and consolidation of other stagecoach lines.

The stagecoach business would eventually fall to rail transportation. Wells Fargo evolved by rapidly opening new banking offices and using railroads to establish a transcontinental express line.

That early transformation would be followed by many organizational developments, including mergers, divestitures, and name changes. Five significant milestones are listed below:

1. In 1905, Wells Fargo separated its bank from its transportation services. The bank merged with Nevada National Bank to form Wells Fargo Nevada National Bank.
2. In 1923, Wells Fargo Nevada National Bank merged with Union Trust Company, creating Wells Fargo Bank & Union Trust Co. The name was later changed to Wells Fargo Bank.
3. In 1960, Wells Fargo Bank merged with American Trust Company, creating the Wells Fargo Bank American Trust Company.
4. In 1962, Wells Fargo became listed as a public company on the NYSE.
5. In 1998, the Norwest Corporation of Minneapolis merged with Wells Fargo. The combined company continued business under the Wells Fargo name.

Largest shareholders

Who are the largest shareholders?

Wells Fargo continues today as a public company owned by institutional and individual investors. Below are five top individual insider shareholders:

1. Charles Scharf owns 800,175 shares or 0.022% of 3.6 billion outstanding shares. At a per-share price of $58, his position is worth $46.4 million. Scharf is Wells Fargo's CEO and president, and is also on the WFC board of directors. Scharf is a longtime banking executive. Before joining Wells Fargo in 2019, he served as CEO of Bank of New York Mellon (BK 0.89%) and CEO of Visa (V 0.33%).
2. Jonathan Weiss owns 376,866 shares worth about $21.8 million. His position amounts to 0.01% of the company's outstanding shares. Weiss is a senior executive vice present for WFC, and is also the CEO of the bank's Corporate and Investment Banking group. Weiss joined the Wells Fargo investment banking team in 2005 and rose to his current role in 2020. He formerly worked for JPMorgan Chase (JPM 0.49%) for 25 years.
3. Michael Santomassimo owns 309,269, or 0.009%, of WFC shares, worth $17.9 million. Santomassimo is Wells Fargo's chief financial officer (CFO) and senior vice president. Santomassimo's background prior to joining Wells Fargo includes decades of leadership roles in banking for BNY Mellon and JPMorgan Chase.
4. Scott Powell holds 245,725 shares of WFC stock. His WFC holdings are worth $14 million and account for 0.007% of the company's outstanding shares. Powell currently serves as WFC's chief operating officer (COO) and senior executive vice president. Powell was formerly CEO of consumer finance company Santander Consumer USA Holdings. He has also worked for JPMorgan Chase and Citi (C -0.32%).
5. Derek Flowers' WFC portfolio totals 237,922 shares. The position is worth $13.8 million and accounts for 0.007% of outstanding shares. Flowers works on Wells Fargo's senior leadership team as chief risk officer and SEVP. He started his career in the bank's wholesale banking unit and previously held several leadership roles in risk management.

Below are the top five institutional owners of Wells Fargo.

1. Vanguard Group owns 321.73 million shares of WFC. The position worth roughly $18.5 billion amounts to 8.94% of outstanding shares. Vanguard is a financial company and fund manager that is owned by its member funds. Funds with large stakes in WFC include Vanguard Total Stock Market Fund (VTSAX 1.27%) and Vanguard 500 Index ETF (VOO -0.07%).
2. BlackRock (BLK -0.5%) owns roughly 262.30 million Wells Fargo shares. In aggregate, those shares are worth about $15 billion and account for 7.26% of the WFC ownership. Blackrock is a leading investment manager with some $10 trillion in assets under management. The company manages mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs). The iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV -0.04%) holds a large position in WFC.
3. FMR, LLC holds 177.2 million shares of Wells Fargo, a position worth around $10 billion that comprises 4.92% of outstanding WFC stock. FMR, LLC is the parent of Fidelity Investments, a diversified financial company that serves individuals and businesses. The Fidelity 500 Index Fund (FXAIX 1.2%) holds 43 million WFC shares.
4. State Street Corporation (SST 1.56%) holds more than $8 billion worth of Wells Fargo stock consisting of 147 million shares, which is a 4.09% ownership stake. State Street operates mutual funds under State Street Global Advisors (SSGA). The company is known for creating the first S&P 500 ETF, SPDR S&P 500 Trust ETF (SPY -0.05%).
5. Dodge & Cox holds 117 million shares of Wells Fargo. The position accounts for 3.25% of outstanding shares and is worth more than $6.5 billion. Dodge & Cox operates actively managed mutual funds with a focus on value stocks.

Board of directors

Who is on the board of directors?

Public companies are governed by boards of directors. A board of directors for a public company is a group of shareholder-elected individuals who oversee and guide the company's strategic direction. The company's CEO typically reports to and serves on the board.

There are 13 directors on Wells Fargo's board:

1. Steven Black has chaired WFC's board since 2021. He has formerly held director roles with private equity firm Bregal Investments, JPMorgan Chase, and the Bank of New York Mellon Corporation. Black's resume also includes other leadership positions within JPMorgan Chase and Citi.
2. Mark Chancy has been a director with Wells Fargo since 2020. Between 2017 and 2019, Chancy was first vice chair and then co-COO of SunTrust Banks, now Truist (TFC -0.13%). He came into those roles after leading SunTrust's wholesale banking segment and serving as SunTrust's CFO.
3. Celeste Clark is a principal at Abraham Clark Consulting, a consulting firm specializing in health and regulatory policy. She formerly held leadership roles, including chief sustainability officer, for Kellogg (KLG 1.39%). Clark has been on Wells Fargo's board since 2018.
4. Theodore Craver, Jr. previously served as chair, president, and CEO of California utility company Edison International (NYSE:ELX). Prior to his career at Edison, Craver was executive vice president and corporate treasurer of First Interstate Bancorp. He has been a director with WFC since 2018.
5. Richard Davis was president and CEO of Make-A-Wish America from 2019 until 2022, the year he joined the WFC board. Between 2007 and 2018, he was executive chair at U.S. Bancorp. Davis was also CEO of U.S. Bancorp (USB 1.56%) from 2006 to 2017.
6. Wayne Hewett's resume includes advisement and leadership roles in the private equity, telematics, life sciences, and HVAC industries. He also worked for General Electric (GE -2.11%) for 20 years, serving as vice president of supply chain and operations, as well as president and CEO of GE Advanced Materials. Hewett has been a director for Wells Fargo since 2019.
7. CeCelia Morken has served as CEO, president, and chief operating officer of the mental wellness app Headspace. She also held high-level positions at Intuit (INTU 0.73%), a global technology company. Morken is currently a director for artificial intelligence (AI) analytics software provider Alteryx and professional services firm Genpact. She has been on Wells Fargo's board since 2022.
8. Maria Morris formerly worked for insurance provider Metlife (MET 0.69%) as executive vice president and head of the company's Global Employee Benefits business. Her long career with Metlife also included tenure as chief marketing officer and head of Global Technology and Operations. Morris has been on the Wells Fargo board since 2018.
9. Felicia Norwood's background includes high-level roles in the healthcare industry. She was executive vice president and president of the Government Business Division for Elevance (ELV 0.15%). She also served as a director for the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services and was president of the Mid-America Region for Aetna. Norwood joined WFC's board in 2022.
10. Richard Payne was previously vice chair, wholesale banking and vice chair of corporate banking for U.S. Bancorp. He also worked as executive vice president for National City Corporation and managing director, Forest and Paper Productions for First Union Corporation. He joined the Wells Fargo board in 2019.
11. Ronald Sargent came to the Wells Fargo board in 2017 after a long executive career at Staples and Kroger (KR 0.94%). He worked as chair and CEO for Staples between 2005 and 2016. Sargent is currently a director for Kroger and Five Below (FIVE 0.51%).
12. Charles Scharf is Wells Fargo's current CEO and president. He has held that position and served on the bank's board since 2019.
13. Suzanne Vautrinot is president of technology consultant Kilovolt Consulting. She formerly served 31 years with the United States Air Force, which culminated in the role of major general and commander, 24th Air Force, Air Forces Cyber and Air Force Network Operations. Vautrinot joined the board in 2015.

None of WFC's directors predate 2015, primarily because a 2016 scandal prompted Wells Fargo to overhaul its board and leadership team. The scandal was rooted in the bank's aggressive sales culture. Employees were aggressively opening unauthorized accounts in customers' names to meet their sales goals.

Wells Fargo has since faced intense scrutiny, fines, and ongoing sanctions from regulators.

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How to invest

How to invest in Wells Fargo?

Wells Fargo trades on the NYSE under the ticker WFC. To invest directly in the company, place a buy order with your U.S.-based brokerage firm.

You can also invest in Wells Fargo indirectly through an ETF or mutual fund. WFC is a member of several market indexes. That means you can easily find the stock within lower-cost, passively managed funds. Funds that track the indexes below will include a Wells Fargo position.

• S&P 500: The S&P 500 includes 500 of the largest and most successful public companies in the U.S. Index constituents are diversified across all sectors.
• S&P 500 Financials: This is a sector index that tracks all financial companies in the S&P 500. You'd invest here if you're interested in owning a basket of bank stocks. You might also want to reference our guide to investing in banking stocks.
• Russell 1000: The Russell 1000 includes the top 1,000 public U.S. companies by market capitalization.

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