Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN) Downgraded by Zacks Research to Strong Sell

Zacks Research lowered shares of Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN) from a hold rating to a strong sell rating in a report released on Tuesday morning,Zacks reports.

Several other equities research analysts also recently commented on SAN. DZ Bank reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Banco Santander in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Barclays reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Banco Santander in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Banco Santander from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. Erste Group Bank cut shares of Banco Santander from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 30th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating on shares of Banco Santander in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $15.10.

Banco Santander Stock Performance

NYSE SAN opened at $12.06 on Tuesday. Banco Santander has a 52-week low of $10.05 and a 52-week high of $15.05. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $13.72 and a 200 day simple moving average of $12.94. The company has a market capitalization of $177.20 billion, a PE ratio of 9.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 0.78.

Banco Santander Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 5th. Investors of record on Friday, October 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.1439 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 30th. This represents a yield of 257.0%. Banco Santander’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.26%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Banco Santander

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in shares of Banco Santander by 118.9% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 11,413,194 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $128,741,000 after purchasing an additional 6,198,828 shares in the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its holdings in shares of Banco Santander by 37.9% during the 1st quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 2,566,939 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $28,955,000 after purchasing an additional 705,034 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in Banco Santander by 32.1% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,535,847 shares of the bank’s stock worth $17,324,000 after purchasing an additional 373,646 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. raised its position in Banco Santander by 18.3% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 956,275 shares of the bank’s stock worth $10,787,000 after purchasing an additional 147,776 shares during the period. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its stake in Banco Santander by 9.2% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 703,998 shares of the bank’s stock worth $7,941,000 after purchasing an additional 59,304 shares during the last quarter. 9.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Banco Santander Company Profile

Banco Santander, SA is a Spain-based global banking group founded in 1857 and headquartered in Santander, Spain. The company provides financial services to individuals, businesses, institutions and governments through a network spanning Europe, North America and South America.

Its principal activities include retail and commercial banking, consumer finance, corporate and investment banking, payments, asset management and private banking. Santander offers products and services such as current and savings accounts, mortgages, personal and business loans, credit cards, insurance, investment products, cash-management services and financing for corporate clients.

The group operates through established banking businesses in markets including Spain, the United Kingdom, Portugal, Poland, Brazil, Mexico, Chile, Argentina and the United States.