Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) Receives $111.57 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

Shares of Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the seven brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $111.57.

BPOP has been the subject of several research reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Popular from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 12th. Barclays boosted their price target on Popular from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Popular from $116.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Popular from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Popular from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $110.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th.

Popular Price Performance

BPOP opened at $83.90 on Friday. Popular has a 12 month low of $78.23 and a 12 month high of $106.81. The business has a 50-day moving average of $92.94 and a two-hundred day moving average of $95.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.62.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $2.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.04 by $0.47. Popular had a net margin of 14.15% and a return on equity of 11.89%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Popular will post 10.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Popular Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th were issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.34%. Popular’s payout ratio is currently 32.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Gilberto Monzon sold 9,600 shares of Popular stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.57, for a total transaction of $984,672.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 39,170 shares in the company, valued at $4,017,666.90. This trade represents a 19.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Eduardo J. Negron sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.02, for a total transaction of $1,040,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 32,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,418,721.32. This trade represents a 23.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Popular

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of BPOP. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Popular in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management boosted its stake in shares of Popular by 56.7% during the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 326 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Popular by 56.6% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 603 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in shares of Popular by 589.9% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 821 shares of the bank’s stock worth $76,000 after buying an additional 702 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of Popular in the third quarter worth $81,000. 87.27% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Popular

Popular, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides various retail, mortgage, and commercial banking products and services in Puerto Rico, the United States, and the British Virgin Islands. The company provides savings, NOW, money market, and other interest-bearing demand accounts; non-interest bearing demand deposits; and certificates of deposit.