Banco Bradesco Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:BBD)

Key Points

• Banco Bradesco saw a major surge in options activity, with traders purchasing 31,304 call options—about 720% above its typical daily volume.
• Analyst sentiment is generally positive: the stock has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating from six analysts, with an average price target of $4.05.
• The shares rose to $4.11, while Bradesco increased its monthly dividend to $0.0038, equivalent to an annualized dividend of approximately $0.05 and a 1.1% yield.

Banco Bradesco SA (NYSE:BBD - Get Free Report) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Tuesday. Stock traders purchased 31,304 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 720% compared to the typical daily volume of 3,817 call options.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on BBD shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Banco Bradesco from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Weiss Ratings raised Banco Bradesco from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Banco Bradesco to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $4.20 price objective on shares of Banco Bradesco in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Finally, Bradesco Corretora raised Banco Bradesco from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Banco Bradesco presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $4.05.

Banco Bradesco Stock Performance

NYSE BBD traded up $0.17 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $4.11. The stock had a trading volume of 15,865,826 shares, compared to its average volume of 35,997,379. Banco Bradesco has a 52-week low of $2.98 and a 52-week high of $4.58. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $3.55 and a 200 day moving average of $3.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.93, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 1.48. The stock has a market cap of $43.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.46.

Banco Bradesco (NYSE:BBD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 30th. The bank reported $0.12 EPS for the quarter. Banco Bradesco had a net margin of 10.55% and a return on equity of 14.61%. The business had revenue of $6.77 billion during the quarter. Sell-side analysts predict that Banco Bradesco will post 0.50 earnings per share for the current year.

Banco Bradesco Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 5th will be given a $0.0038 dividend. This is a positive change from Banco Bradesco's previous monthly dividend of $0.0037. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 5th. This represents a $0.05 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Banco Bradesco's dividend payout ratio is 47.62%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Banco Bradesco

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BBD. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in Banco Bradesco by 355.9% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 28,078,599 shares of the bank's stock valued at $102,487,000 after purchasing an additional 21,920,074 shares in the last quarter. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda grew its stake in shares of Banco Bradesco by 221.5% in the 1st quarter. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda now owns 11,051,974 shares of the bank's stock valued at $40,340,000 after purchasing an additional 7,614,725 shares during the period. Bamco Inc. NY bought a new stake in shares of Banco Bradesco in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,339,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its stake in shares of Banco Bradesco by 103.9% in the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 12,315,995 shares of the bank's stock valued at $44,953,000 after purchasing an additional 6,276,800 shares during the period. Finally, Carrhae Capital LLP acquired a new position in shares of Banco Bradesco in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $15,560,000.

About Banco Bradesco

Banco Bradesco SA is a Brazilian financial services company headquartered in Osasco, São Paulo. Founded in 1943, the bank serves individuals, businesses and institutional clients through a broad network of branches, digital channels and automated banking services.

Bradesco offers traditional banking products and services, including checking and savings accounts, personal and commercial loans, credit and debit cards, payment solutions, foreign exchange and investment products. Through its related businesses, the company also provides insurance, pension and capitalization products, asset management, brokerage and other financial services.

The company primarily serves customers in Brazil and maintains international activities to support corporate and institutional clients, including services related to international banking and trade.

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