Strs Ohio Buys Shares of 19,939 Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP)

Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 19,939 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $1,636,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in BPOP. AE Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Popular by 9.1% during the 3rd quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 19,863 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,252,000 after acquiring an additional 1,662 shares in the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management purchased a new position in Popular during the 3rd quarter valued at about $331,000. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Popular during the 3rd quarter valued at about $142,000. Raymond James & Associates increased its holdings in Popular by 11.3% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 29,986 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,889,000 after acquiring an additional 3,042 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bailard Inc. increased its holdings in Popular by 93.6% during the 3rd quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 9,100 shares of the bank's stock valued at $573,000 after acquiring an additional 4,400 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.27% of the company's stock.

Popular Price Performance

BPOP stock traded up $2.05 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $85.25. 429,400 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 449,866. The company has a market capitalization of $6.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.32 and a beta of 0.82. Popular, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $52.32 and a fifty-two week high of $89.70. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $84.34 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $78.60.

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

Popular Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 13th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.91%. Popular's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.93%.

Insider Transactions at Popular

In other news, EVP Luis E. Cestero sold 599 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.65, for a total transaction of $51,304.35. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,529 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,272,208.85. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, EVP Luis E. Cestero sold 4,641 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.42, for a total transaction of $391,793.22. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,772 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,260,092.24. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Luis E. Cestero sold 599 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.65, for a total transaction of $51,304.35. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,529 shares in the company, valued at $2,272,208.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.13% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BPOP has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Popular from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Popular in a report on Friday, March 8th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $99.00 price target for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Popular from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Popular from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Popular from $103.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Popular presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $91.63.

Popular Company 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.