BBVA Banco Frances (NYSE:BBAR) Trading Down 4.1% - Here's Why

Key Points

• BBVA Banco Frances stock dropped 4.1%, closing at $8.53, with trading volume down 82% from its average.
• Recent analyst ratings for BBAR have been mixed, with one firm downgrading it to a "strong sell," while another upgraded to "hold"; the consensus rating remains a "hold" with a price target of $22.50.
• The company reported earnings per share of $0.24, falling short of expectations by $0.13, and announced a monthly dividend yielding 3.3% based on a modest payout ratio of 20.15%.

BBVA Banco Frances S.A. (NYSE:BBAR - Get Free Report)'s share price was down 4.1% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $8.56 and last traded at $8.53. Approximately 143,139 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 82% from the average daily volume of 795,071 shares. The stock had previously closed at $8.89.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research cut shares of BBVA Banco Frances from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Monday, September 8th. Citigroup lowered shares of BBVA Banco Frances from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 11th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of BBVA Banco Frances from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, September 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $22.50.

BBVA Banco Frances Stock Up 20.7%

The firm has a market cap of $2.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.37 and a beta of 1.30. The firm's fifty day moving average is $13.68 and its 200 day moving average is $16.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.11.

BBVA Banco Frances (NYSE:BBAR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 20th. The bank reported $0.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37 by ($0.13). BBVA Banco Frances had a return on equity of 10.24% and a net margin of 6.65%.The company had revenue of $524.41 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $727.31 billion. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that BBVA Banco Frances S.A. will post 1.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BBVA Banco Frances Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 19th will be issued a $0.0335 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 19th. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a yield of 4.1%. BBVA Banco Frances's payout ratio is currently 29.85%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. lifted its position in BBVA Banco Frances by 199.9% during the second quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 2,381 shares of the bank's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 1,587 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position 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 worth $96,000 after acquiring an additional 1,132 shares in the last quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. bought a new position in BBVA Banco Frances in the first quarter valued at approximately $211,000. Private Advisor Group LLC acquired a new position in BBVA Banco Frances during the first quarter valued at approximately $224,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in BBVA Banco Frances by 123.3% during the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 15,301 shares of the bank's stock worth $252,000 after purchasing an additional 8,450 shares during the last quarter.

BBVA Banco Frances Company Profile

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.