Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) Downgraded by StockNews.com to “Hold”

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) was downgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Thursday.

BPOP has been the topic of several other reports. Barclays raised their target price on Popular from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Popular from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Popular from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. UBS Group started coverage on Popular in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $104.00 price target for the company. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Popular from $116.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Popular has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $113.00.

Popular Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ BPOP opened at $91.52 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $97.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $96.95. Popular has a 52-week low of $80.60 and a 52-week high of $106.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.69, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.77.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $2.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.04 by $0.47. Popular had a return on equity of 11.89% and a net margin of 14.15%. On average, analysts anticipate that Popular will post 10.06 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Popular

In related 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 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 transaction of $984,672.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 39,170 shares in the company, valued at $4,017,666.90. This trade represents a 19.68 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Popular

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BPOP. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Popular in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management boosted its stake in Popular by 56.7% in the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 326 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in Popular in the third quarter valued at $47,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in Popular by 56.6% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 603 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 218 shares during the period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of Popular during the third quarter valued at $81,000. 87.27% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.