Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. Cuts Stake in Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria S.A. $BBVA

Key Points

• Crossmark Global Holdings reduced its BBVA stake by 4.5% in the fourth quarter, selling 61,980 shares and leaving it with 1,312,603 shares valued at about $30.6 million.
• Institutional ownership activity was mixed, with several large investors such as Bank of America, JPMorgan, and American Century increasing their positions, while institutions still hold only 2.96% of BBVA’s stock.
• Analyst sentiment has softened: multiple firms downgraded the stock, leaving BBVA with a consensus Hold rating despite the bank’s latest quarterly EPS of $0.59 and a recent dividend payment of $0.7084 per share.

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. lessened its stake in Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria S.A. (NYSE:BBVA - Free Report) by 4.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,312,603 shares of the bank's stock after selling 61,980 shares during the quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.'s holdings in Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria were worth $30,597,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria by 28.0% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 9,288,196 shares of the bank's stock valued at $142,760,000 after acquiring an additional 2,034,318 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 6,616,619 shares of the bank's stock valued at $125,914,000 after purchasing an additional 40,320 shares during the last quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. now owns 5,755,246 shares of the bank's stock valued at $110,788,000 after purchasing an additional 113,250 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria by 6.5% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,846,150 shares of the bank's stock valued at $93,288,000 after purchasing an additional 297,752 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria by 23.4% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,248,176 shares of the bank's stock valued at $62,527,000 after purchasing an additional 615,985 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 2.96% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BBVA has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings downgraded Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Monday. Wall Street Zen downgraded Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria in a report on Monday, April 20th. Zacks Research downgraded Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut shares of Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold".

Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria Trading Up 1.9%

BBVA opened at $22.29 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $127.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.61, a P/E/G ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 0.81. Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria S.A. has a 12 month low of $14.35 and a 12 month high of $26.20. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $21.95 and a 200 day moving average of $22.39.

Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria (NYSE:BBVA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 31st. The bank reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $12.33 billion during the quarter. Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria had a return on equity of 17.65% and a net margin of 28.21%. On average, research analysts forecast that Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria S.A. will post 2.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 9th were given a $0.7084 dividend. This represents a yield of 626.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 9th. Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria's dividend payout ratio is 54.29%.

Banco Bilbao Viscaya Argentaria Company Profile

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria NYSE: BBVA is a Spanish multinational financial services group headquartered in Bilbao, Spain. The bank traces its roots to several historic regional banks and was formed through a series of mergers that consolidated its position as one of Spain's largest banking groups. BBVA operates as a universal bank offering a broad range of financial services to retail, corporate and institutional clients.

BBVA's core businesses include retail and commercial banking, corporate and investment banking, private banking and wealth management, asset management, and insurance.

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