Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC Acquires 33,978 Shares of Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP)

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP - Free Report) by 94.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 69,907 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 33,978 shares during the period. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC owned about 0.10% of Popular worth $5,737,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in BPOP. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC bought a new position in Popular during the 4th quarter worth $44,000. Assetmark Inc. grew its stake in Popular by 55.4% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,420 shares of the bank's stock worth $89,000 after buying an additional 506 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its stake in Popular by 68.9% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,096 shares of the bank's stock worth $90,000 after buying an additional 447 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Popular by 51.9% during the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,121 shares of the bank's stock worth $91,000 after buying an additional 383 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in Popular by 65.8% during the 2nd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,021 shares of the bank's stock worth $122,000 after buying an additional 802 shares during the last quarter. 87.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Popular Trading Up 1.7 %

BPOP stock traded up $1.37 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $83.20. 386,305 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 353,396. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $84.34 and a 200 day simple moving average of $78.33. Popular, Inc. has a one year low of $52.32 and a one year high of $89.70. The company has a market cap of $6.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.05 and a beta of 0.82.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The bank reported $1.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.89. Popular had a return on equity of 12.63% and a net margin of 13.86%. The business had revenue of $702.92 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $699.76 million. Analysts forecast that Popular, Inc. will post 8.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Popular Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.62 per share. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.98%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 13th. Popular's dividend payout ratio is 32.93%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on BPOP. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Popular from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Citigroup increased their price target on Popular from $103.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Popular from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. StockNews.com raised Popular from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Barclays began coverage on Popular in a research note on Friday, March 8th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $99.00 price target for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $91.63.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Luis E. Cestero sold 599 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.65, for a total value of $51,304.35. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,529 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,272,208.85. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Popular news, EVP Luis E. Cestero sold 4,641 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.42, for a total value of $391,793.22. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 26,772 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,260,092.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Luis E. Cestero sold 599 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.65, for a total value of $51,304.35. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 26,529 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,272,208.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Popular Profile

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.