Short Interest in Intercorp Financial Services Inc. (NYSE:IFS) Grows By 18.7%

Key Points

• Short interest in Intercorp Financial Services rose 18.7% to 311,525 shares as of March 31, equal to about 0.3% of shares and a short-interest ratio of 1.4 days.
• Intercorp increased its annual dividend to $1.80 (ex-dividend date April 24; payable May 5), up from $1.00 and reported in the article with a 358.0% yield.
• The stock traded around $49.13 with an average analyst rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target of $48.00; the company has a market cap of $5.62 billion and a P/E of 10.19.

Intercorp Financial Services Inc. (NYSE:IFS - Get Free Report) saw a large growth in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 311,525 shares, a growth of 18.7% from the March 15th total of 262,552 shares. Approximately 0.3% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 221,430 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.4 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on IFS. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Intercorp Financial Services in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Intercorp Financial Services from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $48.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in IFS. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Intercorp Financial Services by 106.4% during the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 745 shares of the company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 384 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Intercorp Financial Services by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 23,608 shares of the company's stock worth $1,000,000 after purchasing an additional 1,274 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in shares of Intercorp Financial Services by 43.1% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 5,308 shares of the company's stock worth $225,000 after purchasing an additional 1,599 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Intercorp Financial Services during the 4th quarter worth about $94,000. Finally, Employees Retirement System of Texas boosted its stake in shares of Intercorp Financial Services by 47.6% during the 4th quarter. Employees Retirement System of Texas now owns 9,761 shares of the company's stock worth $413,000 after purchasing an additional 3,149 shares during the last quarter.

Intercorp Financial Services Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of Intercorp Financial Services stock traded down $0.06 on Friday, hitting $49.13. The company's stock had a trading volume of 428,161 shares, compared to its average volume of 286,708. Intercorp Financial Services has a 52-week low of $30.59 and a 52-week high of $53.00. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $48.55 and a 200-day moving average price of $44.72. The company has a market capitalization of $5.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.39 and a beta of 0.85.

Intercorp Financial Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 5th. Investors of record on Friday, April 24th will be given a $1.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 24th. This represents a dividend yield of 358.0%. This is a boost from Intercorp Financial Services's previous annual dividend of $1.00. Intercorp Financial Services's payout ratio is presently 19.71%.

Intercorp Financial Services Company Profile

Intercorp Financial Services NYSE: IFS is a Lima-based financial holding company that brings together a suite of banking and non-banking financial businesses under the Intercorp Group umbrella. Through its network of subsidiaries, the company provides a broad range of products and services designed to meet the needs of individual consumers, small and medium-sized enterprises, and large corporations across Peru.

The company's core banking operations are conducted through Interbank, which offers deposit accounts, personal and business loans, credit and debit cards, trade finance and electronic banking solutions.

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