Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) Raised to Buy at StockNews.com

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) was upgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report issued on Wednesday.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Popular from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays raised their price objective on Popular from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on Popular from $112.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Popular from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, UBS Group assumed coverage on Popular in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $104.00 price objective for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $112.25.

Popular Price Performance

BPOP opened at $103.49 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $7.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.06, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.81. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $97.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $97.39. Popular has a 1 year low of $80.60 and a 1 year high of $106.46.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $2.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.47. Popular had a return on equity of 11.35% and a net margin of 12.36%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Popular will post 8.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Popular news, EVP Beatriz Castellvi sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.16, for a total value of $347,060.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 25,115 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,490,403.40. This represents a 12.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Adorno Denissa Rodriguez sold 1,825 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.71, for a total value of $178,320.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,332 shares in the company, valued at $325,569.72. The trade was a 35.39 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.09% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Popular

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp increased its position in Popular by 0.5% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,056,377 shares of the bank’s stock worth $207,475,000 after acquiring an additional 10,599 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Popular by 7.3% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,054,849 shares of the bank’s stock worth $105,769,000 after purchasing an additional 71,782 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in shares of Popular by 8.1% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 902,931 shares of the bank’s stock worth $90,537,000 after purchasing an additional 67,620 shares in the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Popular by 3.7% during the third quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 629,537 shares of the bank’s stock worth $63,124,000 after purchasing an additional 22,355 shares during the period. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Popular by 18.3% in the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 548,057 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $54,954,000 after buying an additional 84,839 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.27% of the company’s stock.

About Popular

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.