Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) has earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $161.1818.

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. UBS Group raised shares of Popular from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $142.00 to $160.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Popular in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Popular from $135.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, March 30th. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Popular from $153.00 to $164.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Popular from $175.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th.

Popular Stock Performance

Popular stock opened at $148.60 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $138.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $127.85. The stock has a market cap of $9.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.59. Popular has a fifty-two week low of $86.61 and a fifty-two week high of $150.05.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The bank reported $3.38 EPS 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 13.70%. The company had revenue of $806.59 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $811.55 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.51 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Popular will post 14.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Popular Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 18th were issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 18th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. Popular’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.35%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Popular

In other Popular news, Director Alejandro M. Ballester sold 2,360 shares of the firm’s 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 sale, the director owned 57,449 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,611,992.50. This trade represents a 3.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Alejandro M. Sanchez sold 1,451 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.85, for a total transaction of $204,373.35. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 3,415 shares in the company, valued at approximately $481,002.75. This trade represents a 29.82% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 2.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Popular

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BPOP. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in Popular by 23.1% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 94,352 shares of the bank’s stock worth $8,715,000 after acquiring an additional 17,729 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd bought a new stake in Popular in the 1st quarter worth $257,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in Popular by 60.6% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 223,530 shares of the bank’s stock worth $20,647,000 after acquiring an additional 84,327 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth bought a new stake in Popular in the 1st quarter worth $207,000. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Popular in the 2nd quarter worth $252,000. Institutional investors own 87.27% of the company’s stock.

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.