Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN) Upgraded to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday morning.

Separately, UBS Group raised Banco Santander from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th.

Banco Santander Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SAN traded down $0.11 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $4.74. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,679,151 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,267,440. Banco Santander has a fifty-two week low of $3.78 and a fifty-two week high of $5.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.08, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.93, a PEG ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 1.14. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $4.95 and its 200 day simple moving average is $4.89.

Banco Santander Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 31st were given a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 31st. This represents a dividend yield of 3%. Banco Santander’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.00%.

Institutional Trading of Banco Santander

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SAN. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky raised its stake in shares of Banco Santander by 20.9% in the 1st quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 4,824,760 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $23,352,000 after buying an additional 834,200 shares in the last quarter. OLD Mission Capital LLC lifted its stake in Banco Santander by 56.1% during the first quarter. OLD Mission Capital LLC now owns 1,417,650 shares of the bank’s stock worth $6,861,000 after purchasing an additional 509,541 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Banco Santander by 24.4% during the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,637,838 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $7,583,000 after purchasing an additional 321,772 shares in the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV raised its holdings in shares of Banco Santander by 38.1% in the 2nd quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 891,187 shares of the bank’s stock worth $4,126,000 after buying an additional 245,765 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mediolanum International Funds Ltd bought a new position in shares of Banco Santander during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,211,000. 9.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Banco Santander Company Profile

Banco Santander, SA provides various financial services worldwide. The company operates through Retail Banking, Santander Corporate & Investment Banking, Wealth Management & Insurance, and PagoNxt segments. It offers demand and time deposits, mutual funds, and current and savings accounts; mortgages, consumer finance, loans, and various financing solutions; and project finance, debt capital markets, global transaction banking, and corporate finance services.