Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 848,842 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $79,842,000. Norges Bank owned 1.19% of Popular as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of BPOP. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Popular during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management raised its holdings in shares of Popular by 56.7% during the fourth quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 326 shares of the bank's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Popular by 56.6% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 603 shares of the bank's stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of Popular in the 3rd quarter valued at about $81,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Popular in the 4th quarter valued at about $166,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.27% of the company's stock.
Popular Price Performance
Shares of BPOP stock traded down $0.66 on Monday, hitting $81.84. The stock had a trading volume of 1,356,895 shares, compared to its average volume of 465,489. The business has a 50 day moving average of $96.34 and a 200 day moving average of $96.47. Popular, Inc. has a 12-month low of $78.23 and a 12-month high of $106.81. The stock has a market cap of $5.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.62.
Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $2.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.47. Popular had a net margin of 14.15% and a return on equity of 11.89%. As a group, research analysts expect that Popular, Inc. will post 10.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Popular Announces Dividend
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 18th. Popular's payout ratio is 32.71%.
Insider Buying and Selling
In other news, EVP Eduardo J. Negron sold 10,000 shares of Popular stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.02, for a total transaction of $1,040,200.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 32,866 shares in the company, valued at $3,418,721.32. The trade was a 23.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Gilberto Monzon sold 9,600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.57, for a total transaction of $984,672.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 39,170 shares in the company, valued at $4,017,666.90. This trade represents a 19.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. StockNews.com raised Popular from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Popular in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $104.00 price target for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Popular from $116.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Popular from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Popular from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $113.00.
Read Our Latest Report on BPOP
Popular Company Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
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