Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Boosts Stock Position in Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP)

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in shares of Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP - Free Report) by 57.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,418,729 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 515,798 shares during the quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned approximately 1.99% of Popular worth $133,446,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of BPOP. Bank of Montreal Can purchased a new stake in shares of Popular during the third quarter worth about $2,337,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in Popular by 303.2% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 23,696 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,376,000 after buying an additional 17,819 shares in the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its position in shares of Popular by 25.2% in the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 6,839 shares of the bank's stock valued at $686,000 after acquiring an additional 1,378 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Popular in the third quarter worth approximately $8,385,000. Finally, Point72 DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Popular during the third quarter worth approximately $713,000. 87.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Popular Stock Performance

Shares of Popular stock traded down $5.20 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $81.71. The company's stock had a trading volume of 146,646 shares, compared to its average volume of 468,292. The stock has a market cap of $5.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.55, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.62. Popular, Inc. has a twelve month low of $78.23 and a twelve month high of $106.81. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $94.83 and a 200-day moving average of $96.08.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $2.51 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.04 by $0.47. Popular had a net margin of 14.15% and a return on equity of 11.89%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Popular, Inc. will post 10.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Popular Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 18th. Popular's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on BPOP. Barclays raised their price objective on Popular from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Popular in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $104.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Popular from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Popular from $116.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Popular from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Popular presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $111.57.

Insider Transactions at Popular

In related news, EVP Gilberto Monzon sold 9,600 shares of Popular stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.57, for a total value of $984,672.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 39,170 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,017,666.90. The trade was a 19.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Eduardo J. Negron sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.02, for a total transaction of $1,040,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 32,866 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,418,721.32. This represents a 23.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.23% of the company's stock.

Popular Profile

Popular, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides various retail, mortgage, and commercial banking products and services in Puerto Rico, the United States, and the British Virgin Islands. The company provides savings, NOW, money market, and other interest-bearing demand accounts; non-interest bearing demand deposits; and certificates of deposit.