Grupo Financiero Galicia (NASDAQ:GGAL) Shares Gap Up Following Dividend Announcement

Key Points

• Grupo Financiero Galicia shares surged opening at $31.12 after a dividend announcement, up from a previous close of $26.45, with the dividend of $0.1381 per share set to be paid on October 7th.
• Recent analyst ratings show a consensus of "Hold" for the stock, with a new average price target of $81.00 following downgrades from Citigroup and Zacks Research.
• Institutions have been actively increasing their holdings, with significant boosts from firms like Hsbc Holdings PLC and PointState Capital LP, indicating growing interest in the company.

Grupo Financiero Galicia S.A. (NASDAQ:GGAL - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped up prior to trading on Monday following a dividend announcement from the company. The stock had previously closed at $26.45, but opened at $31.12. Grupo Financiero Galicia shares last traded at $30.54, with a volume of 2,840,825 shares changing hands. The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $0.1381 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 30th. Grupo Financiero Galicia's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.39%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup cut Grupo Financiero Galicia from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 10th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Grupo Financiero Galicia from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Grupo Financiero Galicia from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, September 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Grupo Financiero Galicia currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $81.00.

Grupo Financiero Galicia Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $43.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $51.87. The company has a market cap of $4.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 4.51 and a beta of 1.71.

Institutional Trading of Grupo Financiero Galicia

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its holdings in Grupo Financiero Galicia by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 11,851,835 shares of the bank's stock valued at $644,503,000 after purchasing an additional 359,708 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Grupo Financiero Galicia by 52.2% in the 2nd quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 1,937,465 shares of the bank's stock valued at $97,629,000 after buying an additional 664,533 shares in the last quarter. PointState Capital LP lifted its holdings in shares of Grupo Financiero Galicia by 160.5% in the 1st quarter. PointState Capital LP now owns 1,504,157 shares of the bank's stock valued at $81,931,000 after purchasing an additional 926,820 shares during the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. raised its position in Grupo Financiero Galicia by 90.5% in the 2nd quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 893,965 shares of the bank's stock valued at $45,047,000 after purchasing an additional 424,693 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Banco BTG Pactual S.A. increased its position in Grupo Financiero Galicia by 198.3% in the 2nd quarter. Banco BTG Pactual S.A. now owns 487,916 shares of the bank's stock valued at $24,586,000 after acquiring an additional 324,358 shares during the period.

About Grupo Financiero Galicia

Grupo Financiero Galicia SA, a financial service holding company, provides various financial products and services to individuals and companies in Argentina. The company operates through Banks, NaranjaX, Insurance, and Other Businesses segments. It also offers personal loans; express and mortgage loans; pledge and credit card loans; credit and debit cards; and online banking services, as well as savings, deposits, and checking accounts related services.

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