Rhumbline Advisers Lowers Stock Position in Popular, Inc. $BPOP

Key Points

• Rhumbline Advisers has reduced its stake in Popular, Inc. by 5.0%, now holding 88,233 shares worth approximately $8.15 million.
• Popular, Inc. reported a quarterly EPS of $3.09, exceeding analysts' expectations by $0.49, with revenues of $800.03 million.
• The company will pay a dividend of $0.1328 per share on September 30, with a current dividend payout ratio of 27.13%.

Rhumbline Advisers reduced its stake in Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP - Free Report) by 5.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 88,233 shares of the bank's stock after selling 4,644 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers owned about 0.13% of Popular worth $8,150,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S acquired a new stake in shares of Popular in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in Popular by 589.9% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 821 shares of the bank's stock worth $76,000 after buying an additional 702 shares during the period. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Popular during the 1st quarter worth approximately $84,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in Popular by 33.4% during the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,749 shares of the bank's stock worth $162,000 after buying an additional 438 shares during the period. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth acquired a new stake in Popular during the 1st quarter worth approximately $207,000. 87.27% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Gilberto Monzon sold 18,001 shares of Popular stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.47, for a total value of $2,240,584.47. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 24,773 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,083,495.31. The trade was a 42.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 2.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BPOP has been the topic of several recent research reports. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Popular from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Popular from $133.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Popular in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Hovde Group reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Popular in a research note on Friday, August 29th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Popular in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Popular presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $128.88.

Popular Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of BPOP stock traded down $0.16 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $123.75. The company had a trading volume of 350,609 shares, compared to its average volume of 560,949. The stock's 50-day moving average is $118.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $104.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.68. Popular, Inc. has a 52 week low of $78.23 and a 52 week high of $128.66.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The bank reported $3.09 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 business had revenue of $800.03 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $777.38 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.46 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Popular, Inc. will post 10.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Popular Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a sep 25 dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.1328 per share. Popular's dividend payout ratio 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.