Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) Receives $112.25 Consensus PT from Brokerages

Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eight research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $112.25.

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on BPOP. Barclays boosted their target price on Popular from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. StockNews.com raised Popular from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company upped 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. Royal Bank of Canada lifted 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. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Popular from $116.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Popular

In other news, EVP Eduardo J. Negron sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.02, for a total value of $1,040,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Gilberto Monzon sold 9,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.57, for a total value of $984,672.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 39,170 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,017,666.90. The trade was a 19.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.09% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Popular

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of BPOP. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Popular in the fourth quarter worth $79,842,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in Popular by 57.1% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,418,729 shares of the bank’s stock worth $133,446,000 after buying an additional 515,798 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in Popular by 53.8% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,312,952 shares of the bank’s stock worth $123,496,000 after acquiring an additional 459,231 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Popular by 235.5% in the 3rd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 332,093 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $33,299,000 after acquiring an additional 233,119 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in shares of Popular by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 4,192,769 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $394,373,000 after acquiring an additional 201,067 shares during the last quarter. 87.27% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Popular Trading Down 3.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:BPOP opened at $100.69 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $7.18 billion, a PE ratio of 11.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.82. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $98.61 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $97.83. Popular has a 1-year low of $80.60 and a 1-year high of $106.81.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $2.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.47. Popular had a net margin of 14.15% and a return on equity of 11.89%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Popular will post 10.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Popular Company Profile

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.