Short Interest in Banco De Chile (NYSE:BCH) Rises By 35.7%

Banco De Chile (NYSE:BCH) saw a significant growth in short interest in January. As of January 30th, there was short interest totaling 534,796 shares, a growth of 35.7% from the January 15th total of 393,972 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 516,943 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.0 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 516,943 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.0 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Banco De Chile

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. TT International Asset Management LTD bought a new stake in Banco De Chile during the third quarter valued at $26,962,000. UBS Group AG raised its position in shares of Banco De Chile by 110.0% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 494,082 shares of the bank’s stock worth $18,775,000 after acquiring an additional 258,844 shares in the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Banco De Chile by 199.1% in the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 352,465 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $10,680,000 after purchasing an additional 234,619 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its position in shares of Banco De Chile by 177.7% during the 3rd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 298,085 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $9,032,000 after purchasing an additional 190,741 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. grew its stake in Banco De Chile by 29.5% during the fourth quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 835,782 shares of the bank’s stock worth $31,755,000 after purchasing an additional 190,567 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 1.24% of the company’s stock.

Banco De Chile Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of Banco De Chile stock traded down $0.33 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $43.42. The company had a trading volume of 598,636 shares, compared to its average volume of 452,885. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $40.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $35.12. Banco De Chile has a fifty-two week low of $23.66 and a fifty-two week high of $46.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.09, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 1.53.

Banco De Chile (NYSE:BCH) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The bank reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $826.07 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $878.92 million. Banco De Chile had a net margin of 33.09% and a return on equity of 23.94%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Banco De Chile will post 2.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BCH has been the topic of a number of research reports. Zacks Research lowered Banco De Chile from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Banco De Chile from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $36.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. UBS Group set a $48.00 price objective on shares of Banco De Chile and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Banco De Chile in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Banco De Chile from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Banco De Chile currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $40.00.

Banco De Chile Company Profile

Banco de Chile (NYSE: BCH) is a leading Chilean financial institution headquartered in Santiago. Founded in 1893, the bank is one of the country’s oldest and most established banking groups, serving a broad spectrum of individual, corporate and institutional clients. It is publicly listed and operates under Chilean banking regulations while participating in international capital markets.

The bank’s core businesses include retail banking, commercial and corporate banking, and investment banking.