Wells Fargo Is Said to Cut 10 Research Analysts to Trim Costs

(Bloomberg) -- Wells Fargo & Co. dismissed 10 research analysts this week as part of a broader cost-cutting initiative, according to people familiar with the matter.

David Wong, who covers the semiconductors industry, and Sean Dargan, insurance, were among six equities analysts to lose their jobs, said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing personnel changes. The others are Andrew Spinola, satellite services; David Lim, automotives; Chris Manuel, paper and packaging; and Jeffrey Farmer, restaurants.

All six either declined to comment or didn’t immediately reply to phone or email messages.

Four fixed-income analysts also were cut, the people said, as the firm seeks to curtail expenses in its wholesale-banking division, which includes Wells Fargo Securities. The bank employs about 300 professionals in its research, strategy and economics unit.

“As part of normal course of business, we continually evaluate needs of our clients and the markets we serve in order to make sure we align and adjust our internal resources accordingly,” Lylah Holmes, a spokeswoman for the San Francisco-based bank, said in an emailed statement.

Expenses mounted in recent years as Wells Fargo grappled with regulatory fines and higher legal costs in the wake of a scandal in which employees opened millions of fake consumer accounts. At the bank’s investor day last month, wholesale-banking chief Perry Pelos said the unit is targeting about $1.5 billion in annual savings by 2020.

--With assistance from Felice Maranz.

To contact the reporters on this story: Lily Katz in New York at lkatz31@bloomberg.net;Hannah Levitt in New York at hlevitt@bloomberg.net;Arie Shapira in New York at ashapira3@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Catherine Larkin at clarkin4@bloomberg.net, ;Michael J. Moore at mmoore55@bloomberg.net, Peter Eichenbaum, Steven Crabill

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