Avantax Advisory Services Inc. Buys 12,690 Shares of Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN)

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. boosted its position in Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN) by 20.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 76,047 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 12,690 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Banco Santander were worth $347,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SAN. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Banco Santander in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in Banco Santander by 2,226.3% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 5,839 shares of the bank’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 5,588 shares during the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in Banco Santander during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Advisors Preferred LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Banco Santander in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of Banco Santander during the third quarter valued at about $45,000. Institutional investors own 9.19% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com raised Banco Santander from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Banco Santander from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Banco Santander from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Banco Santander from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy”.

Banco Santander Stock Up 0.9 %

SAN stock opened at $6.99 on Tuesday. Banco Santander, S.A. has a fifty-two week low of $4.27 and a fifty-two week high of $7.16. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $5.91 and a 200-day moving average of $5.20. The company has a market capitalization of $105.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.42, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.83, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 2.24.

Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The bank reported $0.21 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.21. Banco Santander had a return on equity of 11.90% and a net margin of 15.88%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Banco Santander, S.A. will post 0.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Banco Santander Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $0.1152 per share. This represents a yield of 2.4%. This is a boost from Banco Santander’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.08. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. Banco Santander’s payout ratio is presently 19.28%.

About Banco Santander

Banco Santander, SA provides various financial services worldwide. The company operates through Retail Banking, Santander Corporate & Investment Banking, Wealth Management & Insurance, and PagoNxt segments. It offers demand and time deposits, mutual funds, and current and savings accounts; mortgages, consumer finance, loans, and various financing solutions; and project finance, debt capital markets, global transaction banking, and corporate finance services.