LSV Asset Management Decreases Position in Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP)

LSV Asset Management decreased its stake in Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) by 10.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 559,325 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 66,160 shares during the quarter. LSV Asset Management owned about 0.78% of Popular worth $52,610,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Popular during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management lifted its holdings in shares of Popular by 56.7% in the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 326 shares of the bank’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Popular by 56.6% during the 4th 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 period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of Popular during the 3rd quarter worth about $81,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd bought a new position in Popular during the 4th quarter valued at about $166,000. Institutional investors own 87.27% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Barclays upped their target price on Popular from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Popular from $116.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. StockNews.com upgraded Popular from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 4th. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Popular in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $104.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Popular from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $111.57.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Eduardo J. Negron sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.02, for a total transaction of $1,040,200.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 32,866 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,418,721.32. The trade was a 23.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Gilberto Monzon sold 9,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.57, for a total transaction 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 $4,017,666.90. The trade was a 19.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.23% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Popular Stock Performance

NASDAQ:BPOP opened at $82.33 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $94.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $95.95. Popular, Inc. has a one year low of $78.23 and a one year high of $106.81. The firm has a market cap of $5.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.62, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.62.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $2.51 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. On average, research analysts predict that Popular, Inc. will post 10.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Popular Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced 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 of this dividend was Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.40%. Popular’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.71%.

Popular 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.