Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Purchases New Position in Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN)

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group Inc. invested approximately $299,000 in Banco Santander, acquiring 44,565 shares in the first quarter.
• Banco Santander's stock price opened at $9.09, reflecting a market cap of $135.23 billion and a PE ratio of 10.09.
• Analysts currently rate Banco Santander as a Moderate Buy, with varying recommendations, including a recent upgrade from Wall Street Zen.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm bought 44,565 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $299,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Banco Santander by 791.8% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 294,036 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,970,000 after buying an additional 261,066 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC grew its stake in Banco Santander by 284.9% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 670,513 shares of the bank's stock valued at $3,057,000 after buying an additional 496,309 shares during the last quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC grew its stake in Banco Santander by 30.5% in the 1st quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC now owns 11,875,594 shares of the bank's stock valued at $79,566,000 after buying an additional 2,774,449 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in Banco Santander by 19.9% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,655,351 shares of the bank's stock worth $12,108,000 after purchasing an additional 440,676 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in Banco Santander by 48,283.3% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 72,575 shares of the bank's stock worth $486,000 after purchasing an additional 72,425 shares during the last quarter. 9.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on SAN shares. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Banco Santander in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Banco Santander from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Kepler Capital Markets lowered shares of Banco Santander from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

Banco Santander Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SAN traded up $0.08 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $9.40. 745,497 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,738,657. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $8.42 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $7.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $139.85 billion, a PE ratio of 10.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.06. Banco Santander, S.A. has a 12 month low of $4.43 and a 12 month high of $9.42.

Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The bank reported $0.22 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.26 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $17.83 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.69 billion. Banco Santander had a return on equity of 11.98% and a net margin of 17.30%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Banco Santander, S.A. will post 0.83 earnings per share for the current year.

About Banco Santander

Banco Santander, SA provides various financial services worldwide. The company operates through Retail Banking, Santander Corporate & Investment Banking, Wealth Management & Insurance, and PagoNxt segments. It offers demand and time deposits, mutual funds, and current and savings accounts; mortgages, consumer finance, loans, and various financing solutions; and project finance, debt capital markets, global transaction banking, and corporate finance services.