Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) Upgraded at Bank of America

Bank of America upgraded shares of Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a report released on Tuesday, MarketBeat reports. The firm currently has $156.00 price target on the bank’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Popular from $150.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Popular in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Popular in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Popular from $137.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of Popular in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $152.00 price target on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Popular has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $155.73.

Popular Price Performance

Shares of Popular stock opened at $142.84 on Tuesday. Popular has a 1 year low of $78.23 and a 1 year high of $145.34. The firm has a market cap of $9.52 billion, a PE ratio of 11.59, a PEG ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $125.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $121.37.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The bank reported $3.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.02 by $0.36. Popular had a net margin of 18.75% and a return on equity of 13.87%. The firm had revenue of $815.98 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $811.55 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.51 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Popular will post 10.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Popular Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 5th were paid a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 5th. Popular’s payout ratio is 24.35%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Popular

In related news, Director Alejandro M. Ballester sold 2,360 shares of Popular stock in a transaction on Friday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.50, for a total value of $312,700.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 57,449 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,611,992.50. The trade was a 3.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Richard L. Carrion sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.50, for a total transaction of $2,837,500.00. Following the sale, the director owned 193,020 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,907,770. This represents a 11.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 28,360 shares of company stock worth $3,265,040. 2.09% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Popular

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BPOP. Baron Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Popular by 2.5% during the third quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,597 shares of the bank’s stock worth $457,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the period. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS raised its position in Popular by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 17,000 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,171,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Nebula Research & Development LLC raised its position in Popular by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Nebula Research & Development LLC now owns 9,579 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,056,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Greenwich Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Popular by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Greenwich Wealth Management LLC now owns 28,267 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,115,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the period. Finally, Forum Financial Management LP grew its position in shares of Popular by 6.2% in the 2nd quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 2,671 shares of the bank’s stock worth $294,000 after buying an additional 157 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.27% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Popular

Here are the key news stories impacting Popular this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks upgraded BPOP to a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and highlighted the bank across its value, income and new-strong-buy lists — a coordinated upgrade that can attract momentum, buy-side attention and inflows. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst targets and a “fair value” reset have shifted the narrative on BPOP, reinforcing the bull case and likely supporting multiple expansion after the company’s recent earnings beat and raised forward expectations. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage pieces note BPOP has hit a 52-week high and examine whether the run can continue; useful stock‑momentum context but not new fundamental news. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Insider filing: Alejandro Ballester sold 2,360 shares. Size is modest relative to market cap and recent volume, so this is more housekeeping than a clear negative signal. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Separate headline risk: an unrelated ice-cream chain named “Popular” filed Chapter 11 — could create short-term search/headline confusion but does not reflect Popular, Inc.’s fundamentals. Market impact from this is likely minimal but may cause noise. Read More.

Popular Company Profile

Popular, Inc, headquartered in San Juan, Puerto Rico, is a financial holding company and a leading provider of banking services in the United States mainland and Puerto Rico. Through its primary subsidiaries—Banco Popular de Puerto Rico and Popular Bank—the company delivers comprehensive commercial and consumer banking solutions. It offers deposit products, lending facilities, cash management services and payment-processing solutions designed for individuals, small businesses and large corporations.

The company’s product suite encompasses checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, residential and commercial mortgage loans, business lines of credit and credit cards.