Wells Fargo & Company MN Sells 865 Shares of Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP)

Wells Fargo & Company MN reduced its stake in shares of Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 111,376 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 865 shares during the quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN owned about 0.16% of Popular worth $10,476,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Popular in the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management increased its stake in Popular by 56.7% in the fourth 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. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Popular by 56.6% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 603 shares of the bank’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of Popular during the third quarter worth $81,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Popular during the fourth quarter valued at $166,000. 87.27% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Popular Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of Popular stock opened at $83.90 on Thursday. Popular, Inc. has a 52-week low of $78.23 and a 52-week high of $106.81. The company has a 50 day moving average of $92.94 and a 200 day moving average of $95.55. The company has a market capitalization of $5.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.80, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.62.

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

Popular Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.34%. Popular’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.71%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Popular news, EVP Gilberto Monzon sold 9,600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.57, for a total value of $984,672.00. Following the completion of 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Eduardo J. Negron sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.02, for a total value of $1,040,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Popular from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, April 12th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Popular from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $110.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Popular from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Barclays boosted their price target on Popular from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Popular from $116.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $111.57.

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.