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

Key Points

• BBVA Banco Frances was upgraded from a "sell" to a "hold" rating by Wall Street Zen, and Itau BBA Securities initiated coverage with a "market perform" rating and a price target of $18.00.
• The bank reported $0.24 earnings per share for the recent quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37, and had a revenue of $524.41 million, significantly lower than the expected $727.31 million.
• Several institutional investors have significantly increased their stakes in BBVA Banco Frances, with SBI Securities boosting its holdings by 199.9% in the second quarter.

BBVA Banco Frances (NYSE:BBAR - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report released on Sunday.

Separately, Itau BBA Securities started coverage on BBVA Banco Frances in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $18.00 price target on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $22.50.

BBVA Banco Frances Trading Down 1.3%

NYSE BBAR opened at $12.32 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. BBVA Banco Frances has a twelve month low of $10.06 and a twelve month high of $25.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.52 billion, a PE ratio of 9.19 and a beta of 1.30. The stock's 50 day moving average is $15.07 and its 200 day moving average is $17.62.

BBVA Banco Frances (NYSE:BBAR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 20th. The bank reported $0.24 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37 by ($0.13). BBVA Banco Frances had a net margin of 6.65% and a return on equity of 10.24%. The firm had revenue of $524.41 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $727.31 billion. Research analysts forecast that BBVA Banco Frances will post 1.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BBVA Banco Frances

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BBAR. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in BBVA Banco Frances by 199.9% in the second quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 2,381 shares of the bank's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 1,587 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of BBVA Banco Frances by 27.1% during the first 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 in the last quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. bought a new position in shares of BBVA Banco Frances during the first quarter valued at $211,000. Private Advisor Group LLC bought a new position in shares of BBVA Banco Frances during the first quarter valued at $224,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in shares of BBVA Banco Frances by 123.3% during the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 15,301 shares of the bank's stock valued at $252,000 after purchasing an additional 8,450 shares in 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.

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.