Macro Bank (NYSE:BMA) Shares Up 7.6% - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Macro Bank's shares surged 7.6% during trading, reaching a high of $48.10, though trading volume dropped significantly by 68% compared to its average.
• Recent analyst ratings show mixed opinions; Citigroup downgraded Macro Bank to a "hold," while HSBC upgraded it to "buy" with a revised price target of $80.00.
• The bank declared a monthly dividend of $0.3665, representing an annualized yield of 8.6% and an increase from its previous dividend.

Shares of Macro Bank Inc. (NYSE:BMA - Get Free Report) shot up 7.6% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $48.10 and last traded at $47.21. 135,658 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 68% from the average session volume of 422,484 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.88.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on BMA. Citigroup cut shares of Macro Bank from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 11th. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Macro Bank to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. HSBC raised shares of Macro Bank from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $104.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Zacks Research cut shares of Macro Bank from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Friday, August 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Macro Bank in a research report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $66.63.

Macro Bank Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The company's 50-day moving average is $55.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $70.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 4.51, a P/E/G ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.54.

Macro Bank (NYSE:BMA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 27th. The bank reported $1.95 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.99 by ($0.04). Macro Bank had a net margin of 8.32% and a return on equity of 10.99%. The firm had revenue of $834.78 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $752.51 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Macro Bank Inc. will post 7.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Macro Bank Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a monthly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 19th were paid a $0.3665 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 19th. This is an increase from Macro Bank's previous monthly dividend of $0.37. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.6%. Macro Bank's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.48%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Macro Bank during the first quarter worth about $31,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Macro Bank by 19.0% in the 1st quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 775 shares of the bank's stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Macro Bank by 31.3% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,029 shares of the bank's stock worth $78,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. Burns Matteson Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Macro Bank by 30.4% in the 1st quarter. Burns Matteson Capital Management LLC now owns 2,679 shares of the bank's stock worth $202,000 after purchasing an additional 624 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Deuterium Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Macro Bank in the 1st quarter worth approximately $218,000.

Macro Bank Company Profile

Banco Macro SA provides various banking products and services to retail and corporate customers in Argentina. It offers various retail banking products and services, such as savings and checking accounts, time deposits, credit and debit cards, consumer finance loans, mortgage loans, automobile loans, overdrafts, credit-related services, home and car insurance coverage, tax collection, utility payments, automated teller machines, and money transfers.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.