Short Interest in Banco Bradesco S.A. (NYSE:BBD) Increases By 35.8%

Banco Bradesco S.A. (NYSE:BBD - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 115,210,000 shares, a growth of 35.8% from the December 15th total of 84,850,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 32,950,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.5 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of Banco Bradesco from $3.20 to $2.30 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. HSBC upgraded Banco Bradesco from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $2.80 price objective for the company in a report on Monday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of Banco Bradesco from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, November 25th.

Institutional Trading of Banco Bradesco

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BBD. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in Banco Bradesco by 170.5% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 87,965,525 shares of the bank's stock worth $233,988,000 after acquiring an additional 55,444,555 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC bought a new stake in shares of Banco Bradesco in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $104,542,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. raised its stake in Banco Bradesco by 56.8% during the third quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 37,616,918 shares of the bank's stock worth $100,061,000 after acquiring an additional 13,627,768 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Banco Bradesco by 19.2% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 75,833,254 shares of the bank's stock valued at $201,716,000 after acquiring an additional 12,228,662 shares during the period. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its position in Banco Bradesco by 208.7% in the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 16,851,220 shares of the bank's stock valued at $44,824,000 after acquiring an additional 11,393,100 shares during the period.

Banco Bradesco Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BBD traded down $0.04 during trading on Thursday, reaching $1.98. The stock had a trading volume of 38,167,687 shares, compared to its average volume of 53,069,656. The stock has a market cap of $21.02 billion, a PE ratio of 7.60, a PEG ratio of 0.23 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.72. Banco Bradesco has a 1-year low of $1.84 and a 1-year high of $3.36. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $2.10 and a 200-day moving average price of $2.41.

Banco Bradesco (NYSE:BBD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The bank reported $0.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.01. Banco Bradesco had a return on equity of 10.17% and a net margin of 7.43%. The business had revenue of $9.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.62 billion. On average, equities analysts forecast that Banco Bradesco will post 0.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Banco Bradesco Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.0031 per share. This represents a $0.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 5th. Banco Bradesco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.54%.

About Banco Bradesco

Banco Bradesco SA, together with its subsidiaries, provides various banking products and services to individuals, corporates, and businesses in Brazil and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Banking and Insurance. It provides current, savings, click, and salary accounts; real estate credit, vehicle financing, payroll loans, mortgage loans, microcredit, leasing, and personal and installment credit; overdraft and agribusiness loans; debit and business cards; financial and security services; consortium products; car, personal accident, dental, travel, and life insurance; investment products; pension products; foreign currency exchange services; capitalization bonds; and internet banking services.