Analysts Set Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) Price Target at $113.00

Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the seven brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $113.00.

BPOP has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Popular in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $104.00 price target on the stock. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Popular from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Popular from $116.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Popular from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Popular from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th.

Popular Price Performance

Shares of BPOP opened at $90.22 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $98.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $97.23. The company has a market capitalization of $6.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.54, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.77. Popular has a 1-year low of $80.60 and a 1-year high of $106.81.

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

Popular Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be given a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. Popular’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.71%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Popular news, EVP Gilberto Monzon sold 9,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was 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. The trade was a 19.68 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Eduardo J. Negron sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.02, for a total value of $1,040,200.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 32,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,418,721.32. This represents a 23.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Popular

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Popular during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management raised its holdings in shares of Popular by 56.7% during the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 326 shares of the bank’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of Popular during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $47,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Popular by 56.6% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 603 shares of the bank’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 218 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of Popular during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $81,000. 87.27% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.