Candriam S.C.A. Acquires Shares of 1,101,600 Banco Santander Chile $BSAC

Key Points

• Candriam S.C.A. has invested approximately $25.12 million in Banco Santander Chile, acquiring 1,101,600 shares, which represents about 0.23% ownership in the company.
• Several other institutional investors have significantly increased their stakes in Banco Santander Chile, with Brooklyn Investment Group raising its holdings by an astonishing 54,450%.
• The bank reported earnings per share of $0.60, missing analysts' expectations, along with a consensus price target of $24.00 from various analysts following recent downgrades.

Candriam S.C.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Banco Santander Chile (NYSE:BSAC - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 1,101,600 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $25,116,000. Candriam S.C.A. owned 0.23% of Banco Santander Chile as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cardinal Capital Management increased its holdings in shares of Banco Santander Chile by 0.5% during the first quarter. Cardinal Capital Management now owns 99,099 shares of the bank's stock valued at $2,259,000 after purchasing an additional 472 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its stake in shares of Banco Santander Chile by 54,450.0% during the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,091 shares of the bank's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,089 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Banco Santander Chile by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 492,868 shares of the bank's stock worth $9,295,000 after purchasing an additional 1,307 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its position in Banco Santander Chile by 601.6% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,810 shares of the bank's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 1,552 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in Banco Santander Chile by 13.2% in the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 16,540 shares of the bank's stock valued at $377,000 after buying an additional 1,931 shares in the last quarter. 6.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on BSAC shares. Bank of America downgraded shares of Banco Santander Chile from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $24.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen cut Banco Santander Chile from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Banco Santander Chile from $20.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $24.00.

Banco Santander Chile Price Performance

BSAC stock traded down $0.40 on Tuesday, hitting $23.35. 180,755 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 356,410. The stock has a market cap of $11.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.73, a P/E/G ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.67. Banco Santander Chile has a 1-year low of $18.19 and a 1-year high of $25.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.61. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $23.99 and a 200-day moving average of $23.63.

Banco Santander Chile (NYSE:BSAC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The bank reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.62 by ($0.02). Banco Santander Chile had a net margin of 24.32% and a return on equity of 22.21%. The company had revenue of $757.38 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $758.17 million. On average, analysts forecast that Banco Santander Chile will post 2.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Banco Santander Chile Profile

Banco Santander-Chile, together with its subsidiaries, provides commercial and retail banking services in Chile. It operates through Retail Banking, Middle-Market, Corporate Investment Banking, and Corporate Activities segments. The company offers debit and credit cards, checking accounts, and savings products; consumer, automobile, commercial, mortgage, and government-guaranteed loans; and Chilean peso and foreign currency-denominated loans to finance various commercial transactions, trade, foreign currency forward contracts, and credit lines, as well as mortgage financing services.