BBVA Banco Frances (NYSE:BBAR) Cut to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• BBVA Banco Frances has been downgraded from a "buy" to a "hold" rating by Wall Street Zen in a recent research report.
• Itau BBA Securities has set a new target price of $18.00 for BBVA Banco Frances stock, which is currently priced at around $16.52.
• The bank reported a quarterly earnings per share of $0.28, exceeding estimates, despite lower revenue of $667.94 million compared to the expected $751.69 million.

BBVA Banco Frances (NYSE:BBAR - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Sunday.

Separately, Itau BBA Securities initiated coverage on shares of BBVA Banco Frances in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $18.00 price objective for the company.

BBVA Banco Frances Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BBAR traded down $0.20 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $16.56. 300,677 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 758,442. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $16.41 and its 200-day simple moving average is $18.52. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.68 and a beta of 1.18. BBVA Banco Frances has a twelve month low of $9.19 and a twelve month high of $25.01.

BBVA Banco Frances (NYSE:BBAR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 21st. The bank reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.26 by $0.02. BBVA Banco Frances had a net margin of 8.31% and a return on equity of 13.53%. The business had revenue of $667.94 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $751.69 billion. As a group, research analysts predict that BBVA Banco Frances will post 1.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BBVA Banco Frances

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BBAR. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of BBVA Banco Frances by 199.9% during the 2nd quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 2,381 shares of the bank's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 1,587 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of BBVA Banco Frances by 27.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,303 shares of the bank's stock valued at $96,000 after purchasing an additional 1,132 shares during the last quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. bought a new stake in shares of BBVA Banco Frances during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $211,000. Private Advisor Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of BBVA Banco Frances during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $224,000. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in BBVA Banco Frances by 1,332.9% during the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 14,759 shares of the bank's stock worth $281,000 after acquiring an additional 13,729 shares during the last quarter.

About BBVA Banco Frances

Banco BBVA Argentina SA provides various banking products and services to individuals and companies in Argentina. The company provides retail banking products and services, such as checking and savings accounts, time deposits, credit cards financing, consumer and pledge loans, mortgages, insurance, and investment products to individuals; and small and medium-sized companies products and services, including financing products, factoring, checking accounts, time deposits, transactional and payroll services, insurance, and investment products to private-sector companies.