Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) Rating Increased to Buy at UBS Group

UBS Group upgraded shares of Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a report published on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. UBS Group currently has $160.00 price target on the bank’s stock, up from their previous price target of $142.00.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Hovde Group raised their price objective on shares of Popular from $153.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Popular from $137.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Popular from $146.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Popular from $135.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Popular from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Popular has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $161.18.

Popular Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of BPOP stock opened at $141.64 on Tuesday. Popular has a 12 month low of $79.63 and a 12 month high of $149.31. The business’s 50 day moving average is $137.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $126.48. The company has a market cap of $9.21 billion, a PE ratio of 11.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.59.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The bank reported $3.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.02 by $0.36. The business had revenue of $806.59 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $811.55 million. Popular had a net margin of 18.75% and a return on equity of 13.70%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.51 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Popular will post 10.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Popular Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 18th were given a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 18th. Popular’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.35%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Popular

In related news, Director Alejandro M. Ballester sold 2,360 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.50, for a total value of $312,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 57,449 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,611,992.50. This trade represents a 3.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Alejandro M. Sanchez sold 1,451 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.85, for a total value of $204,373.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 3,415 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $481,002.75. This trade represents a 29.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 2.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC lifted its position in Popular by 140.1% in the third quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC now owns 45,170 shares of the bank’s stock worth $5,737,000 after purchasing an additional 26,354 shares during the period. Ceeto Capital Group LLC bought a new position in Popular in the third quarter worth $29,115,000. Savant Capital LLC lifted its position in Popular by 68.6% in the third quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 17,309 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,198,000 after purchasing an additional 7,043 shares during the period. Ethic Inc. bought a new position in Popular in the third quarter worth $653,000. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH lifted its position in Popular by 13.4% in the third quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 77,807 shares of the bank’s stock worth $9,882,000 after purchasing an additional 9,180 shares during the period. 87.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Popular Company Profile

Popular, Inc, headquartered in San Juan, Puerto Rico, is a financial holding company and a leading provider of banking services in the United States mainland and Puerto Rico. Through its primary subsidiaries—Banco Popular de Puerto Rico and Popular Bank—the company delivers comprehensive commercial and consumer banking solutions. It offers deposit products, lending facilities, cash management services and payment-processing solutions designed for individuals, small businesses and large corporations.

The company’s product suite encompasses checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, residential and commercial mortgage loans, business lines of credit and credit cards.