Research Update: Wells Fargo&Co.

Primary Credit Analyst: Tanya Azarchs, New York, (1) 212-438-7365; tanya_azarchs@standardandpoors.com On Oct. 25, 2002, Standard&Poor's Ratings Services revised its outlook on Wells Fargo&Co (Wells Fargo) and its units to positive from stable. Wells Fargo's ratings were affirmed. Wells Fargo has performed better on a relative basis than most of its large bank peers through the difficult economic environment thus far. It has superior geographic and business line diversity compared to bank holding companies in the U.S. The company has a wide variety of strongly performing business lines, augmenting a deep penetration of a complete line of lending products in its branch area, the western half of the U.S., with nationwide businesses in mortgage banking and consumer

...On Oct. 25, 2002, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services revised its outlook on Wells Fargo & Co (Wells Fargo) and its units to positive from stable. Wells Fargo's ratings were affirmed. Wells Fargo has performed better on a relative basis than most of its large bank peers through the difficult economic environment thus far. It has superior geographic and business line diversity compared to bank holding companies in the U.S. The company has a wide variety of strongly performing business lines, augmenting a deep penetration of a complete line of lending products in its branch area, the western half of the U.S., with nationwide businesses in mortgage banking and consumer finance, wholesale lending, and a variety of fee-based businesses. The company achieves this with a mix of high- and low-risk assets that overall produce stable high returns for a moderate risk profile. An extremely strong core deposit-funding base contributes to higher-than-average liquidity and lending margins. An innovator...

Research Update