Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (NYSE:BBVA) Shares Sold by Ascent Group LLC

Ascent Group LLC lowered its stake in shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (NYSE:BBVA) by 4.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 22,080 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 921 shares during the quarter. Ascent Group LLC’s holdings in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria were worth $215,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of BBVA. Symmetry Investments LP acquired a new position in shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria during the 4th quarter valued at $27,647,000. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 48.6% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,418,877 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $72,111,000 after acquiring an additional 2,424,880 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 514.5% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 951,350 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $9,247,000 after purchasing an additional 796,526 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria during the 4th quarter worth about $7,333,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 13.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,108,410 shares of the bank’s stock worth $49,654,000 after buying an additional 613,563 shares in the last quarter. 2.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on BBVA. Wall Street Zen raised Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 17th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Kepler Capital Markets raised shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria Stock Performance

Shares of BBVA stock opened at $14.96 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $87.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.05. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $13.97 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $12.16. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. has a 52 week low of $9.23 and a 52 week high of $15.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 1.01.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (NYSE:BBVA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The bank reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.47. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria had a net margin of 28.10% and a return on equity of 17.49%. The firm had revenue of $10.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.12 billion. On average, analysts expect that Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. will post 1.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th were issued a dividend of $0.4439 per share. This represents a yield of 4.3%. This is an increase from Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.11. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 9th. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria’s payout ratio is presently 39.15%.

About Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, SA provides retail banking, wholesale banking, and asset management services in the United States, Spain, Mexico, Turkey, South America, and internationally. The company offers savings account, demand deposits, and time deposits; and loan products, such as residential mortgages, other households, credit card loans, loans to enterprises and public sector, as well as consumer finance.