Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Buy Rating

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) was upgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued on Wednesday.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Popular from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Popular from $116.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. 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 note on Wednesday. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Popular from $112.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Popular from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $111.63.

Popular Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:BPOP traded up $1.26 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $103.72. 539,497 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 484,222. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $97.03 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $97.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.81. Popular has a 12 month low of $80.60 and a 12 month high of $106.46.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $2.51 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.47. Popular had a return on equity of 11.35% and a net margin of 12.36%. Analysts forecast that Popular will post 8.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Beatriz Castellvi sold 3,500 shares of Popular stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.16, for a total transaction of $347,060.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 25,115 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,490,403.40. This trade represents a 12.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Adorno Denissa Rodriguez sold 1,825 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.71, for a total transaction of $178,320.75. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,332 shares in the company, valued at approximately $325,569.72. This trade represents a 35.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.09% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Popular

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Financial Management Professionals Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Popular in the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in Popular during the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in Popular during the third quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in Popular in the third quarter worth approximately $81,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Popular during the fourth quarter worth $166,000. 87.27% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Popular

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.