Bessemer Group Inc. Acquires 222,543 Shares of Banco Bradesco S.A. (NYSE:BBD)

Bessemer Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Banco Bradesco S.A. (NYSE:BBD - Free Report) by 5.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,419,708 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 222,543 shares during the quarter. Bessemer Group Inc.'s holdings in Banco Bradesco were worth $8,441,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of BBD. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in Banco Bradesco by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 44,989,586 shares of the bank's stock valued at $120,122,000 after buying an additional 1,139,470 shares during the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its position in shares of Banco Bradesco by 85.5% in the fourth quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 3,936,542 shares of the bank's stock worth $7,519,000 after purchasing an additional 1,814,009 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Banco Bradesco by 71.0% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 15,778,647 shares of the bank's stock worth $42,715,000 after purchasing an additional 6,551,698 shares during the last quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC bought a new position in Banco Bradesco in the fourth quarter valued at $66,000. Finally, Banco Santander S.A. increased its stake in Banco Bradesco by 402.4% in the 4th quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 1,802,819 shares of the bank's stock valued at $3,443,000 after buying an additional 1,443,986 shares during the last quarter.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on BBD shares. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Banco Bradesco from a "buy" rating to a "sell" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $2.40 to $2.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. HSBC raised Banco Bradesco from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $2.80 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th.

Banco Bradesco Stock Performance

NYSE:BBD traded up $0.04 on Thursday, hitting $2.24. The company's stock had a trading volume of 17,649,777 shares, compared to its average volume of 31,690,307. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.48. Banco Bradesco S.A. has a one year low of $1.84 and a one year high of $2.96. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $2.13 and a two-hundred day moving average of $2.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 0.56.

Banco Bradesco (NYSE:BBD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 7th. The bank reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.09. Banco Bradesco had a net margin of 8.46% and a return on equity of 11.43%. Research analysts predict that Banco Bradesco S.A. will post 0.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Banco Bradesco Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.0398 per share. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 21.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 2nd. This is a boost from Banco Bradesco's previous monthly dividend of $0.00. Banco Bradesco's payout ratio is currently 6.67%.

Banco Bradesco Profile

Banco Bradesco SA, together with its subsidiaries, provides various banking products and services to individuals, corporates, and businesses in Brazil and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Banking and Insurance. It provides current, savings, click, and salary accounts; real estate credit, vehicle financing, payroll loans, mortgage loans, microcredit, leasing, and personal and installment credit; overdraft and agribusiness loans; debit and business cards; financial and security services; consortium products; car, personal accident, dental, travel, and life insurance; investment products; pension products; foreign currency exchange services; capitalization bonds; and internet banking services.