Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) Reaches New 1-Year High – What’s Next?

Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $152.95 and last traded at $150.8730, with a volume of 26483 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $150.62.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BPOP has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Credit Suisse Group set a $156.00 price objective on shares of Popular in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Hovde Group upped their price objective on shares of Popular from $153.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Popular from $153.00 to $164.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Popular in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Popular in a research note on Tuesday. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $168.00.

Popular Trading Down 0.7%

The firm has a market capitalization of $9.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.05, a PEG ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.59. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $138.69 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $128.50.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The bank reported $3.78 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.30 by $0.48. The business had revenue of $822.63 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $866.54 million. Popular had a net margin of 20.10% and a return on equity of 14.65%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.56 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Popular, Inc. will post 14.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Popular Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 18th were paid a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 18th. Popular’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.16%.

Insider Transactions at Popular

In related news, Director Alejandro M. Ballester sold 2,360 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.50, for a total value of $312,700.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 57,449 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,611,992.50. This represents a 3.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Alejandro M. Sanchez sold 1,451 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.85, for a total transaction of $204,373.35. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 3,415 shares in the company, valued at approximately $481,002.75. The trade was a 29.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 2.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Popular

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Popular by 140.1% in the 3rd quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC now owns 45,170 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $5,737,000 after purchasing an additional 26,354 shares in the last quarter. Ceeto Capital Group LLC purchased a new position in Popular in the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,115,000. Savant Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Popular by 68.6% in the 3rd quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 17,309 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,198,000 after purchasing an additional 7,043 shares in the last quarter. Ethic Inc. purchased a new position in Popular in the 3rd quarter valued at about $653,000. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH lifted its holdings in Popular by 13.4% in the 3rd quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 77,807 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $9,882,000 after purchasing an additional 9,180 shares in the last quarter. 87.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Popular

Popular, Inc, headquartered in San Juan, Puerto Rico, is a financial holding company and a leading provider of banking services in the United States mainland and Puerto Rico. Through its primary subsidiaries—Banco Popular de Puerto Rico and Popular Bank—the company delivers comprehensive commercial and consumer banking solutions. It offers deposit products, lending facilities, cash management services and payment-processing solutions designed for individuals, small businesses and large corporations.

The company’s product suite encompasses checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, residential and commercial mortgage loans, business lines of credit and credit cards.