Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN) Receives Average Rating of "Buy" from Brokerages

Shares of Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN - Get Free Report) have earned an average rating of "Buy" from the three brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company.

Several analysts recently weighed in on SAN shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Banco Santander from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Banco Santander from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Banco Santander from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 24th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Banco Santander

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SAN. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in Banco Santander in the 3rd quarter valued at about $45,000. Wedmont Private Capital increased its stake in Banco Santander by 11.4% in the 4th quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 34,884 shares of the bank's stock valued at $161,000 after buying an additional 3,565 shares during the last quarter. PFW Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Banco Santander during the 4th quarter worth approximately $136,000. Traveka Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Banco Santander during the 4th quarter worth approximately $171,000. Finally, Fiduciary Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Banco Santander by 15.0% during the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Financial Group LLC now owns 18,882 shares of the bank's stock worth $87,000 after purchasing an additional 2,461 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 9.19% of the company's stock.

Banco Santander Stock Performance

Shares of Banco Santander stock traded up $0.01 on Monday, hitting $7.72. The stock had a trading volume of 11,875,992 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,449,351. Banco Santander has a twelve month low of $4.27 and a twelve month high of $7.74. The business's 50 day moving average is $6.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $5.71. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 2.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.83. The stock has a market cap of $116.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.97.

Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The bank reported $0.22 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.22. The business had revenue of $17.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.94 billion. Banco Santander had a net margin of 15.88% and a return on equity of 11.90%. Analysts forecast that Banco Santander will post 0.83 EPS for the current year.

Banco Santander Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th were paid a $0.1152 dividend. This is a positive change from Banco Santander's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.08. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a yield of 2.4%. Banco Santander's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.69%.

Banco Santander Company Profile

Banco Santander, SA provides various financial services worldwide. The company operates through Retail Banking, Santander Corporate & Investment Banking, Wealth Management & Insurance, and PagoNxt segments. It offers demand and time deposits, mutual funds, and current and savings accounts; mortgages, consumer finance, loans, and various financing solutions; and project finance, debt capital markets, global transaction banking, and corporate finance services.