Banco de Chile (NYSE:BCH) Stake Boosted by Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its position in shares of Banco de Chile (NYSE:BCH) by 8.8% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 100,126 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 8,071 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Banco de Chile were worth $2,311,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Banco de Chile by 737.6% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,697 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $62,000 after acquiring an additional 2,375 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its position in Banco de Chile by 24.8% during the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 7,926 shares of the bank’s stock worth $160,000 after purchasing an additional 1,573 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Preferred LLC acquired a new stake in Banco de Chile during the 4th quarter valued at $194,000. Cerity Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Banco de Chile in the fourth quarter valued at $226,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Banco de Chile by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 10,488 shares of the bank’s stock worth $242,000 after buying an additional 541 shares during the period. 1.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Banco de Chile Stock Performance

Shares of BCH opened at $22.61 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $11.42 billion, a PE ratio of 7.54 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.81, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a current ratio of 1.56. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $22.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $22.07. Banco de Chile has a 52 week low of $19.20 and a 52 week high of $24.10.

Banco de Chile (NYSE:BCH) last issued its earnings results on Monday, January 29th. The bank reported $0.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.15. Banco de Chile had a net margin of 28.62% and a return on equity of 25.45%. The company had revenue of $987.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $872.49 million. Research analysts expect that Banco de Chile will post 2.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Banco de Chile Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a Variable dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 5th. Investors of record on Friday, March 22nd were given a dividend of $1.09 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 21st. This represents a yield of 4.8%. Banco de Chile’s payout ratio is 41.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Banco de Chile from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $22.00.

Banco de Chile Company Profile

Banco de Chile, together with its subsidiaries, provides various banking services to customers in Chile. The company offers checking and debit accounts, debit and credit cards, and lines of credit; mortgage, consume, commercial, general purpose mortgage loans, and finance leases; and factoring services, mutual fund management, stock brokerage, foreign trade, payments and collections, insurance brokerage, including life and general insurance, as well as time deposits, savings instruments, and foreign currency services through branches under the Banco de Chile and Banco Edwards brands.