Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) Rating Increased to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Wednesday morning.

A number of other brokerages also recently weighed in on BPOP. 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. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Popular from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Popular from $112.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Popular from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Popular from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $111.63.

Popular Price Performance

Shares of Popular stock opened at $103.72 on Wednesday. Popular has a 1 year low of $80.60 and a 1 year high of $106.46. The stock has a market cap of $7.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.09, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.81. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $97.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $97.35.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $2.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.04 by $0.47. Popular had a net margin of 12.36% and a return on equity of 11.35%. On average, equities analysts expect that Popular will post 8.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Popular Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. This is an increase from Popular’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. Popular’s payout ratio is presently 32.71%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Beatriz Castellvi sold 3,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.16, for a total transaction of $347,060.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 25,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,490,403.40. This trade represents a 12.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Adorno Denissa Rodriguez sold 1,825 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.71, for a total transaction of $178,320.75. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 3,332 shares in the company, valued at approximately $325,569.72. The trade was a 35.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.09% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Financial Management Professionals Inc. purchased a new stake in Popular in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of Popular in the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in Popular during the third quarter worth $47,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in Popular during the third quarter valued at $81,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Popular in the fourth quarter valued at $166,000. 87.27% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Popular

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.