Banco Santander-Chile (NYSE:BSAC) Reaches New 12-Month High - Still a Buy?

Banco Santander-Chile (NYSE:BSAC - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $25.27 and last traded at $24.97, with a volume of 451226 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $24.65.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on BSAC shares. Bank of America lowered shares of Banco Santander-Chile from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $24.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. StockNews.com lowered shares of Banco Santander-Chile from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Banco Santander-Chile has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $22.33.

Banco Santander-Chile Trading Up 1.3%

The firm has a market cap of $11.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a quick ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.70. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $23.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is $21.12.

Banco Santander-Chile (NYSE:BSAC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The bank reported $0.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $767.62 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $717.38 billion. Banco Santander-Chile had a net margin of 19.16% and a return on equity of 19.15%. As a group, analysts expect that Banco Santander-Chile will post 2.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Banco Santander-Chile Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced an annual dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 23rd were paid a $1.349 dividend. This is an increase from Banco Santander-Chile's previous annual dividend of $1.25. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 23rd. This represents a dividend yield of 4.8%. Banco Santander-Chile's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.23%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Banco Santander-Chile

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of BSAC. Brooklyn Investment Group increased its stake in shares of Banco Santander-Chile by 54,450.0% in the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,091 shares of the bank's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,089 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its holdings in Banco Santander-Chile by 601.6% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,810 shares of the bank's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 1,552 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Banco Santander-Chile by 41.3% during the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 3,089 shares of the bank's stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 903 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Banco Santander-Chile during the 4th quarter worth approximately $61,000. Finally, Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Banco Santander-Chile by 12.3% during the 4th quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 7,897 shares of the bank's stock worth $149,000 after acquiring an additional 863 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 6.42% of the company's stock.

Banco Santander-Chile Company Profile

Banco Santander-Chile, together with its subsidiaries, provides commercial and retail banking services in Chile. It operates through Retail Banking, Middle-Market, Corporate Investment Banking, and Corporate Activities segments. The company offers debit and credit cards, checking accounts, and savings products; consumer, automobile, commercial, mortgage, and government-guaranteed loans; and Chilean peso and foreign currency-denominated loans to finance various commercial transactions, trade, foreign currency forward contracts, and credit lines, as well as mortgage financing services.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.