BBVA Banco Frances S.A. (NYSE:BBAR) Receives Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• BBVA Banco Frances has an average analyst rating of Moderate Buy from seven brokerages (3 hold, 2 buy, 2 strong buy) with a 12‑month consensus target of $17.67.
• Several hedge funds materially increased stakes in the bank—PointState (+60.5% to 2.67M shares, ~$48.2M), Millennium Management (+3,633.8% to 613,832 shares, ~$11.1M) and Aquamarine (+103.8% to 1.14M shares, ~$20.6M).
• The bank missed quarterly EPS estimates ($0.18 vs. $0.34 consensus) and recently paid a monthly dividend of $0.037 (annualized yield ~3.1%, payout ratio 53.01%).

BBVA Banco Frances S.A. (NYSE:BBAR - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the seven brokerages that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $17.6667.

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on BBAR. Wall Street Zen raised shares of BBVA Banco Frances from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, November 28th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of BBVA Banco Frances in a report on Monday, December 29th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BBAR. PointState Capital LP raised its position in BBVA Banco Frances by 60.5% in the fourth quarter. PointState Capital LP now owns 2,668,038 shares of the bank's stock valued at $48,211,000 after purchasing an additional 1,005,978 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of BBVA Banco Frances by 3,633.8% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 613,832 shares of the bank's stock worth $11,092,000 after purchasing an additional 597,392 shares during the period. Aquamarine Financial Cayman Ltd grew its holdings in shares of BBVA Banco Frances by 103.8% during the 4th quarter. Aquamarine Financial Cayman Ltd now owns 1,141,305 shares of the bank's stock worth $20,623,000 after purchasing an additional 581,305 shares during the period. Ping Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of BBVA Banco Frances by 40.8% during the 3rd quarter. Ping Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,050,500 shares of the bank's stock worth $8,740,000 after purchasing an additional 304,600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alpine Global Management LLC purchased a new stake in BBVA Banco Frances in the 4th quarter valued at about $4,042,000.

BBVA Banco Frances Stock Performance

NYSE BBAR opened at $14.09 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.12. The stock's fifty day moving average is $16.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $14.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.98 and a beta of 1.10. BBVA Banco Frances has a fifty-two week low of $7.76 and a fifty-two week high of $23.10.

BBVA Banco Frances (NYSE:BBAR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, March 4th. The bank reported $0.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.34 by ($0.16). BBVA Banco Frances had a return on equity of 6.55% and a net margin of 3.70%.The company had revenue of $337.36 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $874.92 billion. On average, research analysts anticipate that BBVA Banco Frances will post 1.94 earnings per share for the current year.

BBVA Banco Frances Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 23rd. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th were issued a $0.037 dividend. This is a boost from BBVA Banco Frances's previous monthly dividend of $0.04. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 16th. BBVA Banco Frances's payout ratio is currently 53.01%.

About BBVA Banco Frances

BBVA Banco Francés is one of Argentina's leading financial institutions, operating as a subsidiary of the global banking group BBVA. The bank provides a full range of retail and commercial banking services to individuals, small and medium‐sized enterprises, large corporations and institutional clients. Its product suite spans deposit accounts, mortgages, personal and auto loans, credit and debit cards, transactional banking and digital solutions designed to meet the evolving needs of customers in both urban and regional markets.

Founded in Buenos Aires in the late 19th century, Banco Francés has developed a longstanding presence in Argentina's financial sector.

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