Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) Now Covered by Analysts at Hovde Group

Hovde Group began coverage on shares of Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) in a research note issued to investors on Friday. The brokerage issued a market perform rating and a $171.00 price target on the bank’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on BPOP. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Popular from $163.00 to $181.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Popular from $192.00 to $193.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 26th. Benchmark lifted their price target on shares of Popular from $214.00 to $216.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 31st. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Popular from $195.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (a-)” rating on shares of Popular in a report on Thursday, October 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $186.00.

Popular Stock Down 0.4%

NASDAQ:BPOP opened at $157.88 on Friday. Popular has a 52 week low of $109.01 and a 52 week high of $179.24. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $159.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $154.75. The company has a market capitalization of $9.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.95, a P/E/G ratio of 0.48 and a beta of 0.63.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The bank reported $4.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.95 by $0.26. The business had revenue of $874.59 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $904.43 million. Popular had a return on equity of 16.15% and a net margin of 22.36%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.14 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Popular will post 16.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Popular Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 13th will be paid a $0.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 13th. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Popular’s payout ratio is presently 22.68%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Adorno Rodriguez sold 600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.79, for a total value of $101,274.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 2,492 shares in the company, valued at approximately $420,624.68. The trade was a 19.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 2.13% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Popular

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Popular by 1.9% during the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,004,676 shares of the bank’s stock worth $164,948,000 after purchasing an additional 18,647 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. boosted its stake in shares of Popular by 24.9% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 556,630 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $74,684,000 after purchasing an additional 110,887 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in shares of Popular by 8.2% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 465,720 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $62,486,000 after purchasing an additional 35,226 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Popular in the second quarter valued at approximately $54,916,000. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Popular by 24.0% in the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 313,417 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $48,721,000 after purchasing an additional 60,704 shares in the last quarter. 87.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Popular

Popular, Inc. is a financial holding company headquartered in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Founded in 1893, it provides banking and other financial services primarily in Puerto Rico and the U.S. mainland. Its principal subsidiary, Banco Popular de Puerto Rico, serves individuals and businesses with consumer and commercial banking, mortgage lending, and related financial services. Popular also operates Popular Bank in the mainland United States and provides auto financing through Popular Auto. Ignacio Alvarez is Popular’s president and chief executive officer.