Smartleaf Asset Management LLC Increases Holdings in Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN)

Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN) by 62.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 105,415 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 40,438 shares during the quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Banco Santander were worth $479,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. raised its position in Banco Santander by 197.0% in the fourth quarter. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. now owns 557,390 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,542,000 after purchasing an additional 369,700 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its position in Banco Santander by 111.8% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 706,184 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,602,000 after purchasing an additional 372,690 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its position in Banco Santander by 33.9% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 20,893,727 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $106,558,000 after purchasing an additional 5,290,236 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC raised its position in Banco Santander by 143.0% in the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 345,524 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,757,000 after purchasing an additional 203,322 shares during the period. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC raised its position in Banco Santander by 47.4% in the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 668,343 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,409,000 after purchasing an additional 214,868 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 9.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on SAN shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Banco Santander from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 24th. StockNews.com raised Banco Santander from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Banco Santander from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised Banco Santander from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy”.

Banco Santander Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE SAN opened at $6.48 on Tuesday. Banco Santander, S.A. has a twelve month low of $4.12 and a twelve month high of $6.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $98.19 billion, a PE ratio of 7.81, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a current ratio of 2.24, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.83. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $5.26 and a 200-day simple moving average of $5.00.

Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The bank reported $0.21 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.21. Banco Santander had a return on equity of 11.90% and a net margin of 15.88%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Banco Santander, S.A. will post 0.83 earnings per share for the current year.

About Banco Santander

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.