Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria S.A. (NYSE:BBVA) Given Average Recommendation of "Hold" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria (BBVA) has a consensus analyst rating of Hold, with six of seven analysts rating it hold and one rating it buy.
• Several firms recently downgraded the stock, including Barclays and Bank of America, which both moved BBVA to more neutral ratings.
• BBVA recently traded near its 52-week high at $26.19, and the bank reported quarterly EPS of $0.59 with revenue of $12.33 billion.

Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria S.A. (NYSE:BBVA - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus recommendation of "Hold" from the seven analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating on the company.

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays lowered Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Bank of America lowered Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Wall Street Zen cut Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BBVA. Savvy Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Savvy Advisors Inc. now owns 15,062 shares of the bank's stock worth $351,000 after acquiring an additional 418 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC grew its position in Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria by 59.6% in the 4th quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,141 shares of the bank's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 426 shares in the last quarter. Seeds Investor LLC increased its stake in Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Seeds Investor LLC now owns 15,003 shares of the bank's stock worth $350,000 after purchasing an additional 439 shares during the period. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. increased its stake in Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria by 50.9% during the fourth quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 1,304 shares of the bank's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 440 shares during the period. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria by 45.6% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,456 shares of the bank's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 456 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 2.96% of the company's stock.

Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria Stock Performance

NYSE BBVA opened at $26.19 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $149.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 0.80. Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria has a 52 week low of $14.90 and a 52 week high of $26.40. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $24.02 and a 200-day moving average of $23.30.

Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria (NYSE:BBVA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 31st. The bank reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $12.33 billion during the quarter. Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria had a net margin of 28.21% and a return on equity of 17.65%. Equities research analysts forecast that Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria will post 2.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria Company Profile

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria NYSE: BBVA is a Spanish multinational financial services group headquartered in Bilbao, Spain. The bank traces its roots to several historic regional banks and was formed through a series of mergers that consolidated its position as one of Spain's largest banking groups. BBVA operates as a universal bank offering a broad range of financial services to retail, corporate and institutional clients.

BBVA's core businesses include retail and commercial banking, corporate and investment banking, private banking and wealth management, asset management, and insurance.

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