Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN) Raised to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Banco Santander from “Hold” to “Buy.” Overall analyst sentiment is “Moderate Buy,” with six Buy, three Hold, and one Sell rating.
• Banco Santander shares opened at $14.34, down 3.3%, while trading near their 12-month high of $15.05. The stock has a market capitalization of approximately $210.6 billion and a P/E ratio of 11.65.
• The bank’s latest quarterly earnings missed expectations, reporting $0.27 in earnings per share versus the $0.29 consensus estimate, although revenue of $17.93 billion slightly exceeded forecasts. Institutional investors own 9.19% of the company, with several funds recently increasing their positions.

Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on SAN. Weiss Ratings downgraded Banco Santander from a "buy (a-)" rating to a "buy (b+)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Santander restated a "buy" rating on shares of Banco Santander in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

Banco Santander Stock Down 3.3%

Shares of NYSE:SAN opened at $14.34 on Friday. The business's 50 day moving average is $14.35 and its 200 day moving average is $12.97. Banco Santander has a 12-month low of $9.62 and a 12-month high of $15.05. The stock has a market cap of $210.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.65, a PEG ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 0.74.

Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The bank reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by ($0.02). Banco Santander had a net margin of 26.94% and a return on equity of 12.43%. The firm had revenue of $17.93 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.90 billion. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Banco Santander will post 1.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Fiduciary Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Banco Santander by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter. Fiduciary Financial Group LLC now owns 20,658 shares of the bank's stock valued at $285,000 after purchasing an additional 788 shares during the period. Nilsine Partners LLC grew its position in Banco Santander by 4.2% during the second quarter. Nilsine Partners LLC now owns 23,331 shares of the bank's stock worth $322,000 after buying an additional 936 shares in the last quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co. increased its stake in Banco Santander by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co. now owns 17,477 shares of the bank's stock worth $205,000 after acquiring an additional 1,011 shares during the last quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Banco Santander by 4.7% in the 2nd quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 22,675 shares of the bank's stock valued at $313,000 after acquiring an additional 1,022 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Klingman & Associates LLC boosted its position in shares of Banco Santander by 9.8% during the 1st quarter. Klingman & Associates LLC now owns 11,595 shares of the bank's stock valued at $131,000 after acquiring an additional 1,039 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 9.19% of the company's stock.

About Banco Santander

Banco Santander, SA is a global banking group headquartered in Santander, Spain. Founded in 1857, the company provides financial products and services to individuals, businesses, institutions and governments through its banking operations in Europe, North America and South America.

Its principal activities include retail and commercial banking, consumer finance, corporate and investment banking, private banking, asset management, insurance and payment services. Santander offers products such as current and savings accounts, mortgages, personal loans, credit cards, business financing, investment products and digital banking services.

The group operates through established franchises in markets including Spain, the United Kingdom, Portugal, Poland, Brazil, Mexico, Chile, Argentina and the United States.

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