Venturi Wealth Management LLC Acquires 2,597 Shares of Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP)

Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) by 1,938.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,731 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,597 shares during the quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Popular were worth $257,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of BPOP. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Popular by 235.5% in the 3rd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 332,093 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $33,299,000 after purchasing an additional 233,119 shares during the period. Soros Fund Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Popular during the 3rd quarter valued at $9,115,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Popular by 18.3% during the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 548,057 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $54,954,000 after buying an additional 84,839 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Popular during the 3rd quarter valued at $8,385,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Popular by 304.3% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 99,861 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $10,042,000 after buying an additional 75,164 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.27% of the company’s stock.

Popular Stock Performance

Shares of BPOP opened at $100.69 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.82. Popular, Inc. has a 52-week low of $80.60 and a 52-week high of $106.81. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $98.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $97.73.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $2.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.47. Popular had a return on equity of 11.89% and a net margin of 14.15%. On average, research analysts forecast that Popular, Inc. will post 10.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on BPOP. Barclays upped their price target on Popular from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. 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. StockNews.com raised Popular from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. UBS Group began coverage on Popular in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $104.00 price target on the stock. Finally, 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Popular currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $112.25.

Insider Activity at Popular

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

About Popular

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.