American Century Companies Inc. Purchases 159,378 Shares of Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN)

American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN - Free Report) by 4.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,407,110 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 159,378 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc.'s holdings in Banco Santander were worth $15,536,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. boosted its position in shares of Banco Santander by 197.0% during the fourth quarter. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. now owns 557,390 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,542,000 after buying an additional 369,700 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in shares of Banco Santander by 111.8% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 706,184 shares of the bank's stock worth $3,602,000 after acquiring an additional 372,690 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of Banco Santander by 33.9% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 20,893,727 shares of the bank's stock valued at $106,558,000 after purchasing an additional 5,290,236 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Banco Santander by 143.0% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 345,524 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,757,000 after purchasing an additional 203,322 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Banco Santander by 62.2% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 105,415 shares of the bank's stock worth $479,000 after purchasing an additional 40,438 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 9.19% of the company's stock.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on SAN shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Banco Santander from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Banco Santander from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Banco Santander from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Banco Santander currently has a consensus rating of "Buy".

Banco Santander Stock Performance

Shares of SAN stock traded up $0.08 on Wednesday, reaching $6.86. The stock had a trading volume of 4,615,709 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,246,115. Banco Santander, S.A. has a 12 month low of $4.27 and a 12 month high of $7.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $103.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.27, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.09. The firm's 50-day moving average is $6.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $5.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 2.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.83.

Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The bank reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.21. Banco Santander had a return on equity of 11.90% and a net margin of 15.88%. On average, research analysts expect that Banco Santander, S.A. will post 0.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Banco Santander Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.1152 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. This is a boost from Banco Santander's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.08. Banco Santander's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.28%.

Banco Santander Company Profile

Banco Santander, SA provides various financial services worldwide. The company operates through Retail Banking, Santander Corporate & Investment Banking, Wealth Management & Insurance, and PagoNxt segments. It offers demand and time deposits, mutual funds, and current and savings accounts; mortgages, consumer finance, loans, and various financing solutions; and project finance, debt capital markets, global transaction banking, and corporate finance services.