Oak Thistle LLC Has $1.58 Million Holdings in Popular, Inc. $BPOP

Key Points

• Oak Thistle LLC increased its stake in Popular by 167.8% in Q4, acquiring an additional 7,953 shares to hold 12,692 shares worth about $1.58 million at the end of the period.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive — firms including UBS and Barclays raised ratings/targets and MarketBeat shows a consensus of "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $161.18 — and Popular recently beat Q4 EPS estimates ($3.38 vs. $3.02).
• Corporate insiders have been selling (Director Alejandro M. Ballester sold 2,360 shares and Director Alejandro M. Sanchez sold 1,451 shares), leaving insiders with 2.09% ownership while institutional investors hold 87.27% of the stock.

Oak Thistle LLC increased its position in shares of Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP - Free Report) by 167.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,692 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 7,953 shares during the period. Oak Thistle LLC's holdings in Popular were worth $1,580,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Advisory Services Network LLC acquired a new stake in Popular during the third quarter worth $31,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its stake in shares of Popular by 262.9% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 352 shares of the bank's stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 255 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP raised its stake in shares of Popular by 117.7% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 540 shares of the bank's stock valued at $69,000 after buying an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Popular by 84.2% during the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 593 shares of the bank's stock worth $76,000 after acquiring an additional 271 shares during the period. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Popular by 63.2% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 682 shares of the bank's stock valued at $87,000 after acquiring an additional 264 shares in the last quarter. 87.27% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Popular news, Director Alejandro M. Ballester sold 2,360 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.50, for a total value of $312,700.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 57,449 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,611,992.50. The trade was a 3.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Alejandro M. Sanchez sold 1,451 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.85, for a total value of $204,373.35. Following the sale, the director owned 3,415 shares in the company, valued at $481,002.75. The trade was a 29.82% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 2.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Popular

Here are the key news stories impacting Popular this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UBS upgraded Popular from "hold" to "buy" and set a $160 price target, signaling stronger analyst confidence in the stock. UBS upgrades popular (BPOP)
• Positive Sentiment: Barclays raised its price target to $180 and kept an "overweight" rating, implying meaningful upside vs. the current price and reinforcing buy-side momentum. Barclays raises price target to $180
• Positive Sentiment: Another upgrade/coverage note (Kalkine Media) highlighted renewed investor interest in the bank sector and Popular specifically, supporting bullish flows. Popular NASDAQ: BPOP Upgrade Sparks Nasdaq Composite Banking Focus
• Positive Sentiment: Popular announced executive leadership changes, naming Israel Velasco EVP and Head of U.S. Operations — a management move intended to support execution of the new strategic framework. Popular Inc. Announces Executive Leadership Changes
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks published a piece labeling Popular a top dividend stock, which can attract income-focused investors and support multiple expansion. Popular (BPOP) is a Top Dividend Stock Right Now: Should You Buy?
• Neutral Sentiment: A New York Times piece on federal budget changes is macro context — potential policy shifts could indirectly affect consumer spending and banks, but it's not Popular-specific. To Boost Military Budget, Trump Targets Popular Programs at Home
• Neutral Sentiment: An industry/interest piece on customized gifts is not company-specific and unlikely to move Popular's stock materially. The Popularity of Customized Gifts
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks downgraded Popular from "strong-buy" to "hold," a cautionary analyst signal that may cap upside or prompt some profit-taking by short-term holders. Zacks Research downgrade

Popular Stock Up 2.6%

Shares of Popular stock opened at $145.37 on Thursday. Popular, Inc. has a 12-month low of $79.63 and a 12-month high of $149.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $137.32 and a 200 day simple moving average of $126.61.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The bank reported $3.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.02 by $0.36. The firm had revenue of $806.59 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $811.55 million. Popular had a net margin of 18.75% and a return on equity of 13.70%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.51 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Popular, Inc. will post 10.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Popular Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 18th were issued a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 18th. Popular's payout ratio is presently 24.35%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on BPOP. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Popular from $137.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Zacks Research downgraded Popular from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday. Hovde Group upped their price objective on Popular from $153.00 to $176.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Bank of America raised Popular from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $156.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Popular from $146.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Popular has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $161.18.

About Popular

Popular, Inc, headquartered in San Juan, Puerto Rico, is a financial holding company and a leading provider of banking services in the United States mainland and Puerto Rico. Through its primary subsidiaries—Banco Popular de Puerto Rico and Popular Bank—the company delivers comprehensive commercial and consumer banking solutions. It offers deposit products, lending facilities, cash management services and payment-processing solutions designed for individuals, small businesses and large corporations.

The company's product suite encompasses checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, residential and commercial mortgage loans, business lines of credit and credit cards.

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