Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Hold

StockNews.com lowered shares of Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report published on Thursday morning.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. UBS Group began coverage on Popular in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $104.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target 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. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Popular from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Popular from $116.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Popular from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $113.00.

Popular Trading Down 1.8 %

NASDAQ:BPOP opened at $91.52 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.35 billion, a PE ratio of 10.69, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.77. Popular has a 1 year low of $80.60 and a 1 year high of $106.81. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $97.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $96.95.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $2.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.04 by $0.47. Popular had a return on equity of 11.89% and a net margin of 14.15%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Popular will post 10.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Popular Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be given a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. Popular’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Popular

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Popular

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BPOP. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Popular in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management grew its stake in Popular by 56.7% in the fourth quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 326 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in Popular in the third quarter valued at about $47,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Popular by 56.6% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 603 shares of the bank’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 218 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of Popular during the third quarter worth about $81,000. 87.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.