Short Interest in Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria S.A. (NYSE:BBVA) Decreases By 32.8%

Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria S.A. (NYSE:BBVA) saw a large drop in short interest in January. As of January 30th, there was short interest totaling 1,619,504 shares, a drop of 32.8% from the January 15th total of 2,411,115 shares. Currently, 0.0% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 1,605,955 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.0 days. Based on an average trading volume of 1,605,955 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.0 days. Currently, 0.0% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MML Investors Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria by 15.8% during the 4th quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 259,479 shares of the bank’s stock worth $6,048,000 after buying an additional 35,489 shares during the last quarter. Mariner LLC raised its stake in Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 616,491 shares of the bank’s stock worth $14,374,000 after acquiring an additional 21,080 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its holdings in shares of Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria by 20.7% in the fourth quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 93,443 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,178,000 after acquiring an additional 16,041 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria by 1,819.7% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 3,616,734 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $84,306,000 after purchasing an additional 3,428,336 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,067,000. 2.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria Price Performance

Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria stock opened at $22.69 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $130.76 billion, a PE ratio of 11.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $23.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $20.99. Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria has a one year low of $11.59 and a one year high of $26.20.

Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria (NYSE:BBVA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The bank reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.50. Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria had a return on equity of 17.29% and a net margin of 28.43%. As a group, research analysts expect that Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria will post 1.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria in a report on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research raised Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada downgraded Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Wall Street Zen cut Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. They set an “equal weight” rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

About Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (NYSE:BBVA) is a Spanish multinational financial services group headquartered in Bilbao, Spain. The bank traces its roots to several historic regional banks and was formed through a series of mergers that consolidated its position as one of Spain’s largest banking groups. BBVA operates as a universal bank offering a broad range of financial services to retail, corporate and institutional clients.

BBVA’s core businesses include retail and commercial banking, corporate and investment banking, private banking and wealth management, asset management, and insurance.