Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) Shares Acquired by New York Life Investment Management LLC

New York Life Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) by 7.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 8,033 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 544 shares during the period. New York Life Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Popular were worth $659,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its stake in shares of Popular by 0.5% in the third quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 30,898 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,947,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System increased its holdings in Popular by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 20,493 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,291,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares during the period. Rock Point Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Popular by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Rock Point Advisors LLC now owns 31,792 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,003,000 after purchasing an additional 345 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Popular by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 112,543 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $7,091,000 after buying an additional 367 shares during the period. Finally, Assetmark Inc. grew its position in shares of Popular by 55.4% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,420 shares of the bank’s stock worth $89,000 after buying an additional 506 shares in the last quarter. 87.27% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Popular Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ BPOP opened at $90.30 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $6.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.40, a P/E/G ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.81. Popular, Inc. has a twelve month low of $53.46 and a twelve month high of $90.74. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $85.26 and a two-hundred day moving average of $80.52.

Popular Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, March 14th were paid a dividend of $0.62 per share. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 13th. Popular’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.80%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Popular from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Popular from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Hovde Group raised their price target on Popular from $112.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $110.00 price objective (up from $103.00) on shares of Popular in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on Popular from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $99.89.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Luis E. Cestero sold 4,641 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.42, for a total value of $391,793.22. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,772 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,260,092.24. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 2.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.