Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (NYSE:BBVA) Shares Sold by Ramirez Asset Management Inc.

Ramirez Asset Management Inc. decreased its position in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (NYSE:BBVA) by 10.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 174,563 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 19,857 shares during the period. Ramirez Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria were worth $1,697,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria in the 4th quarter valued at about $3,208,000. Summitry LLC lifted its position in shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 22.8% during the 4th quarter. Summitry LLC now owns 30,288 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $294,000 after buying an additional 5,628 shares in the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC grew its stake in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 189.4% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 397,979 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,868,000 after acquiring an additional 260,472 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,226,849 shares of the bank’s stock worth $21,645,000 after acquiring an additional 156,006 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Summit Global Investments lifted its holdings in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 105.5% during the fourth quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 539,796 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $5,247,000 after purchasing an additional 277,164 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 2.96% of the company’s stock.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria Trading Down 0.5 %

NYSE:BBVA opened at $14.15 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. has a 52-week low of $9.23 and a 52-week high of $14.84. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $12.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $10.99. The company has a market capitalization of $82.58 billion, a PE ratio of 7.81, a P/E/G ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.26.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (NYSE:BBVA) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The bank reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.04. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria had a return on equity of 17.49% and a net margin of 28.10%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. will post 1.59 EPS for the current year.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid a $0.4439 dividend. This is a boost from Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.11. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a dividend yield of 4.3%. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.18%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on BBVA. Kepler Capital Markets raised shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Hsbc Global Res raised Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

About Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, SA provides retail banking, wholesale banking, and asset management services in the United States, Spain, Mexico, Turkey, South America, and internationally. The company offers savings account, demand deposits, and time deposits; and loan products, such as residential mortgages, other households, credit card loans, loans to enterprises and public sector, as well as consumer finance.