Walleye Capital LLC Trims Holdings in Banco Bradesco SA $BBD

Key Points

• Walleye Capital LLC reduced its stake in Banco Bradesco SA by 58.1%, selling over 2.3 million shares and ending the quarter with approximately 1.7 million shares valued at $3.8 million.
• Several hedge funds, including Simplicity Wealth LLC and Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC, made new investments in Banco Bradesco during the first quarter, indicating growing interest in the bank's stock.
• Banco Bradesco recently increased its dividend to $0.0023 per share, a significant change from its previous payout of $0.00, reflecting a positive development for investors.

Walleye Capital LLC lessened its holdings in Banco Bradesco SA (NYSE:BBD - Free Report) by 58.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,719,649 shares of the bank's stock after selling 2,385,174 shares during the period. Walleye Capital LLC's holdings in Banco Bradesco were worth $3,835,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in BBD. ARGA Investment Management LP raised its holdings in shares of Banco Bradesco by 53.0% in the 1st quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 126,724,278 shares of the bank's stock valued at $282,595,000 after acquiring an additional 43,884,334 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of Banco Bradesco by 22.7% during the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 69,682,931 shares of the bank's stock valued at $155,393,000 after buying an additional 12,873,188 shares in the last quarter. Moerus Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Banco Bradesco during the 1st quarter valued at $27,372,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of Banco Bradesco during the 4th quarter valued at $13,097,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its position in shares of Banco Bradesco by 431.3% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 7,205,238 shares of the bank's stock valued at $13,762,000 after buying an additional 5,848,994 shares in the last quarter.

Banco Bradesco Trading Down 0.3%

Banco Bradesco stock traded down $0.01 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $3.10. The company had a trading volume of 29,247,962 shares, compared to its average volume of 30,747,668. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11. Banco Bradesco SA has a 12-month low of $1.84 and a 12-month high of $3.13. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $2.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $2.60. The firm has a market cap of $32.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.86, a P/E/G ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 0.68.

Banco Bradesco (NYSE:BBD - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The bank reported $0.10 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.10. Banco Bradesco had a net margin of 9.76% and a return on equity of 12.96%. The company had revenue of $5.87 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $32.70 billion. Equities analysts forecast that Banco Bradesco SA will post 0.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Banco Bradesco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.0035 per share. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. This is a boost from Banco Bradesco's previous monthly dividend of $0.00. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 3rd. Banco Bradesco's payout ratio is presently 8.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on BBD. Citigroup upgraded Banco Bradesco from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Bank of America raised Banco Bradesco from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Banco Bradesco presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $2.40.

About Banco Bradesco

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.