Raymond James Financial Inc. Purchases 116,422 Shares of Banco Bradesco SA $BBD

Key Points

• Raymond James Financial Inc. increased its stake in Banco Bradesco SA by 6.9% in the 1st quarter, owning 1,803,157 shares valued at approximately $4.02 million.
• Citigroup upgraded Banco Bradesco's stock rating from "hold" to "buy", while the current consensus rating remains at "Hold" with a price target of $2.40.
• Banco Bradesco declared a monthly dividend of $0.0035 to be paid on October 8th, resulting in an annualized yield of 1.3% after an increase from its previous dividend of $0.00.

Raymond James Financial Inc. boosted its position in shares of Banco Bradesco SA (NYSE:BBD - Free Report) by 6.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,803,157 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 116,422 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc.'s holdings in Banco Bradesco were worth $4,021,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of BBD. Stifel Financial Corp acquired a new stake in Banco Bradesco during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Banco Bradesco by 11.4% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,117,017 shares of the bank's stock worth $7,864,000 after buying an additional 421,994 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Banco Bradesco by 107.0% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,870,010 shares of the bank's stock worth $5,482,000 after buying an additional 1,483,783 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in Banco Bradesco by 431.3% during the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 7,205,238 shares of the bank's stock worth $13,762,000 after buying an additional 5,848,994 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bayesian Capital Management LP grew its stake in Banco Bradesco by 67.6% during the fourth quarter. Bayesian Capital Management LP now owns 39,400 shares of the bank's stock worth $75,000 after buying an additional 15,885 shares in the last quarter.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Citigroup upgraded Banco Bradesco from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Banco Bradesco presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $2.40.

Banco Bradesco Price Performance

Banco Bradesco stock traded up $0.04 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $3.16. The company's stock had a trading volume of 38,748,662 shares, compared to its average volume of 29,614,522. Banco Bradesco SA has a 52 week low of $1.84 and a 52 week high of $3.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $2.95 and a 200-day moving average price of $2.66. The stock has a market cap of $33.63 billion, a PE ratio of 9.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 0.76.

Banco Bradesco (NYSE:BBD - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The bank reported $0.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.10. The firm had revenue of $5.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $32.70 billion. Banco Bradesco had a return on equity of 12.96% and a net margin of 9.76%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Banco Bradesco SA will post 0.37 EPS for the current year.

Banco Bradesco Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.0035 per share. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. This is an increase from Banco Bradesco's previous monthly dividend of $0.00. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 3rd. Banco Bradesco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.57%.

Banco Bradesco Profile

Banco Bradesco SA, together with its subsidiaries, provides various banking products and services to individuals, corporates, and businesses in Brazil and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Banking and Insurance. It provides current, savings, click, and salary accounts; real estate credit, vehicle financing, payroll loans, mortgage loans, microcredit, leasing, and personal and installment credit; overdraft and agribusiness loans; debit and business cards; financial and security services; consortium products; car, personal accident, dental, travel, and life insurance; investment products; pension products; foreign currency exchange services; capitalization bonds; and internet banking services.