BBVA Banco Frances (NYSE:BBAR) Stock Price Down 5.9% - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• BBAR shares fell 5.9% to approximately $12.09, with trading volume 66% below the average session volume.
• Analyst sentiment remains moderately positive but mixed: MarketBeat reports a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $20, despite recent downgrades from Citigroup and Weiss Ratings.
• The bank reported quarterly EPS of $0.42 on $716.56 million in revenue, while several institutional investors—including Alpine Global Management—recently established or increased positions.

Shares of BBVA Banco Frances S.A. (NYSE:BBAR - Get Free Report) were down 5.9% on Thursday. The company traded as low as $12.10 and last traded at $12.0860. 230,847 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 66% from the average session volume of 680,094 shares. The stock had previously closed at $12.85.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on BBAR. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of BBVA Banco Frances from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Citigroup lowered shares of BBVA Banco Frances from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of BBVA Banco Frances from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, September 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut BBVA Banco Frances from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research note on Monday, September 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $20.00.

BBVA Banco Frances Stock Performance

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $15.59 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $16.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.24 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

BBVA Banco Frances (NYSE:BBAR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, August 14th. The bank reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $716.56 million for the quarter. BBVA Banco Frances had a net margin of 4.16% and a return on equity of 7.56%. On average, equities analysts forecast that BBVA Banco Frances S.A. will post 1.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BBVA Banco Frances

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. NewEdge Advisors LLC bought a new position in BBVA Banco Frances in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $311,000. XP Advisory US Inc. bought a new position in shares of BBVA Banco Frances during the second quarter worth about $63,000. OceanIQ Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of BBVA Banco Frances in the 2nd quarter valued at $249,000. Carter Financial Group INC. acquired a new stake in BBVA Banco Frances during the 1st quarter worth about $150,000. Finally, Alpine Global Management LLC bought a new position in shares of BBVA Banco Frances during the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,042,000.

About BBVA Banco Frances

BBVA Banco Francés, now known as Banco BBVA Argentina SA, is an Argentine financial institution and a subsidiary of the global BBVA Group. The bank provides banking and financial services to individuals, businesses, corporations and institutional clients throughout Argentina.

Its offerings include checking and savings accounts, consumer and commercial lending, mortgages, credit and debit cards, investment products, foreign-exchange services, payments and cash-management solutions. Through its corporate and investment banking operations, the bank also serves large companies and institutions with financing, transaction banking and related advisory services.

The institution traces its origins to Banco Francés del Río de la Plata, founded in Argentina in 1886.

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