Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN) Shares Bought by Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.

Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN) by 12.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 87,074 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,960 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.’s holdings in Banco Santander were worth $397,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Banco Santander by 2,226.3% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 5,839 shares of the bank’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 5,588 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Banco Santander during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Banco Santander in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Advisors Preferred LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Banco Santander in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in Banco Santander during the third quarter worth $45,000. 9.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on SAN. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Banco Santander from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Banco Santander from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Banco Santander from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Banco Santander currently has an average rating of “Buy”.

Banco Santander Price Performance

Banco Santander stock opened at $6.91 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 2.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.83. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $6.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $5.23. Banco Santander, S.A. has a 52 week low of $4.27 and a 52 week high of $7.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $104.63 billion, a PE ratio of 8.32, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.09.

Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The bank reported $0.21 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21. Banco Santander had a net margin of 15.88% and a return on equity of 11.90%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Banco Santander, S.A. will post 0.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Banco Santander Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. This is a boost from Banco Santander’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.08. Banco Santander’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.