BBVA Banco Frances S.A. (NYSE:BBAR) Short Interest Update

BBVA Banco Frances S.A. (NYSE:BBAR) was the target of a large drop in short interest in the month of July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totaling 1,059,497 shares, a drop of 40.4% from the July 15th total of 1,778,693 shares. Currently, 0.5% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 450,863 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.3 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on BBAR shares. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of BBVA Banco Frances from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of BBVA Banco Frances in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of BBVA Banco Frances from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $18.50.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BBAR. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its position in BBVA Banco Frances by 54,175.0% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,171 shares of the bank’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 2,167 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp purchased a new position in shares of BBVA Banco Frances during the fourth quarter worth approximately $150,000. Carter Financial Group INC. purchased a new position in shares of BBVA Banco Frances during the first quarter worth approximately $150,000. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in shares of BBVA Banco Frances by 78.0% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 10,973 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $198,000 after acquiring an additional 4,808 shares during the period. Finally, Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in BBVA Banco Frances in the 4th quarter valued at $224,000.

BBVA Banco Frances Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:BBAR traded down $0.13 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $14.63. 166,920 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 676,345. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $19.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $17.03. BBVA Banco Frances has a 12-month low of $7.76 and a 12-month high of $22.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.90 and a beta of 1.02.

BBVA Banco Frances (NYSE:BBAR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 15th. The bank reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter. BBVA Banco Frances had a net margin of 3.44% and a return on equity of 6.27%. The firm had revenue of $822.07 million during the quarter. On average, research analysts predict that BBVA Banco Frances will post 1.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BBVA Banco Frances Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a monthly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 12th were issued a $0.0131 dividend. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 12th. BBVA Banco Frances’s payout ratio is presently 102.44%.

BBVA Banco Frances Company Profile

BBVA Banco Francés is one of Argentina’s leading financial institutions, operating as a subsidiary of the global banking group BBVA. The bank provides a full range of retail and commercial banking services to individuals, small and medium‐sized enterprises, large corporations and institutional clients. Its product suite spans deposit accounts, mortgages, personal and auto loans, credit and debit cards, transactional banking and digital solutions designed to meet the evolving needs of customers in both urban and regional markets.

Founded in Buenos Aires in the late 19th century, Banco Francés has developed a longstanding presence in Argentina’s financial sector.