Short Interest in Grupo Financiero Galicia S.A. (NASDAQ:GGAL) Rises By 5.9%

Grupo Financiero Galicia S.A. (NASDAQ:GGAL - Get Free Report) saw a significant growth in short interest in October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,790,000 shares, a growth of 5.9% from the September 30th total of 3,580,000 shares. Approximately 3.2% of the company's stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 1,040,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.6 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on GGAL. Citigroup raised shares of Grupo Financiero Galicia from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $54.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Grupo Financiero Galicia from an "underweight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $54.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, August 30th. Bank of America upgraded Grupo Financiero Galicia from an "underperform" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $28.00 to $36.00 in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Grupo Financiero Galicia from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Grupo Financiero Galicia

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ping Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Grupo Financiero Galicia in the second quarter worth about $23,611,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Grupo Financiero Galicia during the second quarter worth $8,573,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in shares of Grupo Financiero Galicia by 266.5% during the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 338,939 shares of the bank's stock valued at $8,616,000 after acquiring an additional 246,452 shares during the period. PEAK6 Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of Grupo Financiero Galicia by 135.8% in the 1st quarter. PEAK6 Investments LLC now owns 64,480 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,639,000 after purchasing an additional 244,580 shares in the last quarter. Finally, INCA Investments LLC increased its position in shares of Grupo Financiero Galicia by 27.6% during the 1st quarter. INCA Investments LLC now owns 1,078,149 shares of the bank's stock worth $27,407,000 after purchasing an additional 232,980 shares in the last quarter.

Grupo Financiero Galicia Stock Performance

Shares of GGAL traded up $0.46 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $52.72. The company's stock had a trading volume of 906,420 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,016,954. Grupo Financiero Galicia has a one year low of $10.76 and a one year high of $55.61. The stock's 50-day moving average is $44.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $36.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.77 billion, a PE ratio of 7.37 and a beta of 1.93.

Grupo Financiero Galicia Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a -- dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 26th. Investors of record on Monday, August 19th were paid a $0.7248 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 19th. This is a boost from Grupo Financiero Galicia's previous -- dividend of $0.14. Grupo Financiero Galicia's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.29%.

About Grupo Financiero Galicia

Grupo Financiero Galicia SA, a financial service holding company, provides various financial products and services to individuals and companies in Argentina. The company operates through Banks, NaranjaX, Insurance, and Other Businesses segments. It also offers personal loans; express and mortgage loans; pledge and credit card loans; credit and debit cards; and online banking services, as well as savings, deposits, and checking accounts related services.