Popular, Inc. $BPOP Shares Sold by Alyeska Investment Group L.P.

Key Points

• Alyeska Investment Group L.P. significantly reduced its holdings in Popular, Inc. by 59.5%, selling 359,385 shares during the first quarter, leaving it with 244,390 shares valued at approximately $22.57 million.
• Popular, Inc. reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings with an EPS of $3.09, exceeding the analyst consensus estimate of $2.60 and a revenue of $800.03 million, surpassing estimates of $777.38 million.
• The company declared a dividend of $0.1328 per share, with a payout ratio of 27.13%, to be paid on September 30th to shareholders of record on September 15th.

Alyeska Investment Group L.P. cut its holdings in Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP - Free Report) by 59.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 244,390 shares of the bank's stock after selling 359,385 shares during the period. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. owned 0.35% of Popular worth $22,574,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BPOP. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its stake in Popular by 32.0% during the fourth quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 723,384 shares of the bank's stock worth $68,041,000 after purchasing an additional 175,327 shares in the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Popular in the fourth quarter valued at $11,305,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Popular by 140.8% during the fourth quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 201,331 shares of the bank's stock worth $18,937,000 after purchasing an additional 117,705 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Popular during the first quarter worth about $10,122,000. Finally, Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Popular during the first quarter worth about $7,905,000. 87.27% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Popular Price Performance

BPOP stock traded up $0.64 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $124.82. The stock had a trading volume of 63,375 shares, compared to its average volume of 560,594. The firm has a market cap of $8.44 billion, a PE ratio of 12.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.68. Popular, Inc. has a 12-month low of $78.23 and a 12-month high of $128.66. The company's 50-day moving average price is $117.76 and its 200 day moving average price is $104.24.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The bank reported $3.09 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.60 by $0.49. The firm had revenue of $800.03 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $777.38 million. Popular had a net margin of 16.49% and a return on equity of 12.48%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.46 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Popular, Inc. will post 10.06 EPS for the current year.

Popular Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a sep 25 dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $0.1328 dividend. Popular's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.07%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Popular in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Popular from $110.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Hovde Group reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Popular in a research note on Friday, August 29th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Popular from $133.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Popular from $125.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $128.88.

Insider Buying and Selling at Popular

In other Popular news, EVP Gilberto Monzon sold 18,001 shares of Popular stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.47, for a total value of $2,240,584.47. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 24,773 shares in the company, valued at $3,083,495.31. This trade represents a 42.08% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 2.23% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Popular Profile

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.