Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN) Stock Position Boosted by HighTower Advisors LLC

HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN - Free Report) by 24.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 430,251 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 84,727 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC's holdings in Banco Santander were worth $1,962,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SAN. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Banco Santander during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in Banco Santander by 2,226.3% during the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 5,839 shares of the bank's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 5,588 shares in the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in Banco Santander in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Advisors Preferred LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Banco Santander during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of Banco Santander in the third quarter valued at approximately $45,000. 9.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SAN has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Banco Santander from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Banco Santander from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Banco Santander from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Banco Santander presently has a consensus rating of "Buy".

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Banco Santander Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of SAN stock traded up $0.02 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $6.93. 3,638,984 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,954,805. Banco Santander, S.A. has a fifty-two week low of $4.27 and a fifty-two week high of $7.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.83, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 2.24. The company has a market capitalization of $104.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.34, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.09. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $6.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $5.23.

Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The bank reported $0.21 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.21. Banco Santander had a return on equity of 11.90% and a net margin of 15.88%. Research analysts predict that Banco Santander, S.A. will post 0.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Banco Santander Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $0.1152 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a yield of 2.4%. This is a positive change from Banco Santander's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.08. Banco Santander's payout ratio 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.