Polaris Capital Management LLC Sells 375,018 Shares of Popular, Inc. $BPOP

Key Points

• Polaris Capital Management LLC has reduced its stake in Popular, Inc. by 28.1%, selling 375,018 shares and now holds 959,330 shares, representing 7.0% of its holdings.
• Several institutional investors have recently increased their positions in Popular, with 87.27% of the company's stock now owned by such entities.
• Popular, Inc. reported strong quarterly earnings, beating analysts' estimates, and has received multiple "buy" ratings from brokerages, with a consensus target price of $130.13.

Polaris Capital Management LLC decreased its position in Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP - Free Report) by 28.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 959,330 shares of the bank's stock after selling 375,018 shares during the period. Popular makes up 7.0% of Polaris Capital Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its biggest holding. Polaris Capital Management LLC owned about 1.40% of Popular worth $105,728,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of BPOP. Steph & Co. acquired a new position in Popular in the second quarter valued at $39,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Popular by 112.2% in the second quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 418 shares of the bank's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 221 shares during the period. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S acquired a new position in Popular in the first quarter valued at $47,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in Popular in the first quarter valued at $84,000. Finally, Hilltop National Bank acquired a new position in Popular in the second quarter valued at $143,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.27% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Popular

In related news, EVP Gilberto Monzon sold 18,001 shares of Popular stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.47, for a total transaction of $2,240,584.47. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 24,773 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,083,495.31. This trade represents a 42.08% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 2.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on BPOP. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Popular from $133.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Popular from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Popular in a report on Saturday, September 27th. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Popular in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Popular from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, September 22nd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $130.13.

Popular Trading Up 1.2%

NASDAQ:BPOP opened at $125.93 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $121.98 and a 200-day moving average price of $108.14. Popular, Inc. has a 12 month low of $78.23 and a 12 month high of $129.32. The stock has a market cap of $8.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.20, a P/E/G ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.68.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The bank reported $3.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.60 by $0.49. Popular had a net margin of 16.49% and a return on equity of 12.48%. The company had revenue of $800.03 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $777.38 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.46 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Popular, Inc. will post 10.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Popular Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a sep 25 dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th were given a dividend of $0.1328 per share. Popular's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.07%.

About Popular

Popular, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides various retail, mortgage, and commercial banking products and services in Puerto Rico, the United States, and the British Virgin Islands. The company provides savings, NOW, money market, and other interest-bearing demand accounts; non-interest bearing demand deposits; and certificates of deposit.

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