Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores (NYSE:AVAL) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Here’s Why

Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores S.A. (NYSE:AVAL) saw unusually-high trading volume on Friday . Approximately 365,686 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 98% from the previous session’s volume of 185,150 shares.The stock last traded at $4.0790 and had previously closed at $4.23.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AVAL has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup downgraded shares of Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold”.

Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores Trading Down 5.4%

The company has a market cap of $4.75 billion, a PE ratio of 10.81 and a beta of 0.60. The company’s 50 day moving average is $4.34 and its 200 day moving average is $4.31.

Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores (NYSE:AVAL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 13th. The bank reported $0.08 EPS for the quarter. Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores had a net margin of 4.99% and a return on equity of 6.97%. Analysts expect that Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores S.A. will post 0.48 EPS for the current year.

Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a monthly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 1st were given a dividend of $0.0144 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 1st. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.3%. Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.84%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its position in Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores by 6.0% during the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 895,772 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,941,000 after purchasing an additional 50,912 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores by 7.0% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 132,619 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $580,000 after purchasing an additional 8,692 shares during the period. Sage Investment Counsel LLC increased its position in Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores by 79.3% during the 1st quarter. Sage Investment Counsel LLC now owns 60,955 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $268,000 after purchasing an additional 26,955 shares during the period. Apollon Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores during the 1st quarter valued at about $55,000. Finally, Stokes Family Office LLC increased its position in Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Stokes Family Office LLC now owns 87,317 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $354,000 after purchasing an additional 4,198 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores Company Profile

Grupo Aval Acciones y Valores SA is a leading Colombian financial holding company that offers a diversified range of banking and financial services across Latin America. As one of the largest financial conglomerates in Colombia, Grupo Aval provides commercial and retail banking, leasing, insurance brokerage, pension fund management and investment banking through its principal subsidiaries.

Its core banking operations are conducted through a network of well-established institutions, including Banco de Bogotá, Banco de Occidente, Banco Popular and Banco AV Villas, which together serve individual consumers, small and medium-sized enterprises and large corporate clients.