Banco Santander Chile (NYSE:BSAC) Upgraded by JPMorgan Chase & Co. to "Overweight" Rating

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Banco Santander Chile from "neutral" to "overweight" and set a $40 price target, implying about a 26.8% potential upside from the current share price.
• Analyst views remain mixed — the consensus is still "Hold" with an average target of $32.75 (two Buy, three Hold, two Sell), and notable moves include upgrades from Itau BBA and a cut to "strong sell" from Goldman Sachs.
• Company fundamentals: BSAC opened near $31.55, has a P/E of 13.72 and market cap of ~$14.86B; last quarter EPS was $0.62, return on equity 21.51%, and analysts forecast about 2.07 EPS for the year.

Banco Santander Chile (NYSE:BSAC - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating in a note issued to investors on Monday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage presently has a $40.00 price objective on the bank's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s target price points to a potential upside of 26.78% from the stock's current price.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Itau BBA Securities raised shares of Banco Santander Chile from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Banco Santander Chile from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, February 21st. Morgan Stanley set a $38.00 price target on shares of Banco Santander Chile in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Banco Santander Chile in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Banco Santander Chile from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Banco Santander Chile currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $32.75.

Banco Santander Chile Stock Performance

BSAC opened at $31.55 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $34.14 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $30.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.72 and a beta of 0.57. Banco Santander Chile has a 12-month low of $20.77 and a 12-month high of $37.72.

Banco Santander Chile (NYSE:BSAC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 9th. The bank reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter. Banco Santander Chile had a return on equity of 21.51% and a net margin of 24.57%.The company had revenue of $740.07 million during the quarter. On average, equities analysts forecast that Banco Santander Chile will post 2.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Banco Santander Chile

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BSAC. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Banco Santander Chile in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Banco Santander Chile by 577.8% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,559 shares of the bank's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 1,329 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Banco Santander Chile by 199.8% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,511 shares of the bank's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,007 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in Banco Santander Chile by 739.5% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,486 shares of the bank's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,309 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its position in Banco Santander Chile by 703.0% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 2,666 shares of the bank's stock valued at $83,000 after purchasing an additional 2,334 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 6.42% of the company's stock.

About Banco Santander Chile

Banco Santander Chile NYSE: BSAC is one of the leading financial institutions in Chile and a key component of the global Santander Group. The bank offers a comprehensive range of banking and financial services, including retail and commercial lending, deposit accounts, credit cards, wealth management, insurance products and corporate banking solutions. Headquartered in Santiago, it operates an extensive network of branches, ATMs and digital platforms to serve individual customers, small and medium-sized enterprises and large corporations across the country.

Originally founded as Banco de Santiago in the late 1970s, the institution became part of the Santander Group following the privatization wave in Chile during the late 1980s.

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