Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) Shares Purchased by Quantbot Technologies LP

Quantbot Technologies LP increased its holdings in shares of Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) by 463.4% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 28,446 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 23,397 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP’s holdings in Popular were worth $2,676,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. TCW Group Inc. grew its position in Popular by 15.2% in the 3rd quarter. TCW Group Inc. now owns 94,815 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $9,507,000 after acquiring an additional 12,494 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Popular by 7.3% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,054,849 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $105,769,000 after acquiring an additional 71,782 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its position in Popular by 284.9% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 72,403 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $7,260,000 after acquiring an additional 53,590 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC grew its position in Popular by 83.9% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 9,546 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $957,000 after acquiring an additional 4,354 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in Popular by 56.6% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 603 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 218 shares in the last quarter. 87.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Popular Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ BPOP opened at $91.37 on Friday. Popular, Inc. has a twelve month low of $80.60 and a twelve month high of $106.81. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $98.48 and a two-hundred day moving average of $97.12. The stock has a market cap of $6.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.67, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.77.

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

Popular Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.06%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. Popular’s payout ratio is currently 32.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com raised Popular from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Popular from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Popular from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Popular from $116.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Popular from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $113.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Gilberto Monzon sold 9,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.57, for a total transaction of $984,672.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 39,170 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,017,666.90. This represents a 19.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 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 value of $1,040,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 32,866 shares in the company, valued at $3,418,721.32. This trade represents a 23.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.