Emerald Advisers LLC Decreases Holdings in Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP)

Emerald Advisers LLC reduced its stake in Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) by 98.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 3,234 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 161,748 shares during the period. Emerald Advisers LLC’s holdings in Popular were worth $304,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in BPOP. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in Popular by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 2,239 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $211,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management raised its holdings in shares of Popular by 56.7% in the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 326 shares of the bank’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its stake in Popular by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 20,953 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,971,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC grew its holdings in Popular by 0.8% during the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 19,690 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,974,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the period. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Popular by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 30,709 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,888,000 after buying an additional 214 shares during the last quarter. 87.27% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on BPOP shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Popular from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted 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. Barclays boosted their price objective on Popular from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. UBS Group started coverage on Popular in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $104.00 target price for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Popular from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $113.00.

Popular Price Performance

BPOP stock opened at $91.37 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $98.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $97.11. The stock has a market cap of $6.36 billion, a PE ratio of 10.67, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.77. Popular, Inc. has a one year low of $80.60 and a one year high of $106.81.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $2.51 earnings per share (EPS) 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, research analysts expect that Popular, Inc. will post 10.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Popular Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. Popular’s payout ratio is currently 32.71%.

Insider Activity at Popular

In related news, EVP Eduardo J. Negron sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 32,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,418,721.32. This trade represents a 23.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Gilberto Monzon sold 9,600 shares of Popular stock in a transaction on 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 owns 39,170 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,017,666.90. The trade was a 19.68 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.09% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Popular Company 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.