Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) Sees Large Volume Increase

Shares of Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) saw an uptick in trading volume on Friday . 273,367 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 30% from the previous session’s volume of 391,039 shares.The stock last traded at $99.25 and had previously closed at $98.64.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on BPOP. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Popular from $90.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Hovde Group raised their price objective on shares of Popular from $113.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of Popular in a report on Monday, August 26th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $112.00 target price for the company. Barclays increased their price target on Popular from $103.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $120.00 price objective (up from $110.00) on shares of Popular in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Popular currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $106.00.

Popular Stock Down 1.4 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $7.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.64, a PEG ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $96.44 and a 200-day moving average price of $89.71.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The bank reported $2.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.38. The business had revenue of $1.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $751.57 million. Popular had a return on equity of 11.73% and a net margin of 12.20%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.10 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Popular, Inc. will post 8.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Popular Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be given a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.55%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. Popular’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.80%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Popular

In other news, EVP Camille Burckhart sold 5,917 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.60, for a total value of $577,499.20. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 29,922 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,920,387.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 2.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Popular

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BPOP. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Popular in the first quarter worth $42,000. Mather Group LLC. purchased a new stake in shares of Popular in the second quarter valued at $44,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Popular in the 2nd quarter worth about $48,000. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Popular during the 4th quarter worth about $83,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Popular by 16.8% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,259 shares of the bank’s stock worth $111,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.27% of the company’s stock.

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.