Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (NYSE:BBVA) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (NYSE:BBVA) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,590,000 shares, a drop of 29.3% from the February 28th total of 2,250,000 shares. Approximately 0.0% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 2,550,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.6 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on BBVA shares. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Kepler Capital Markets raised shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Symmetry Investments LP bought a new stake in shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,647,000. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 48.6% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,418,877 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $72,111,000 after buying an additional 2,424,880 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 514.5% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 951,350 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $9,247,000 after buying an additional 796,526 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria during the 4th quarter worth $7,333,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 13.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,108,410 shares of the bank’s stock worth $49,654,000 after acquiring an additional 613,563 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 2.96% of the company’s stock.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria stock traded down $0.12 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $13.62. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,554,604 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,814,642. The company has a market capitalization of $79.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.52, a P/E/G ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.26. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $12.91 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $11.06. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria has a one year low of $9.23 and a one year high of $14.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 1.01.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (NYSE:BBVA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The bank reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.04. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria had a net margin of 28.10% and a return on equity of 17.49%. On average, research analysts forecast that Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria will post 1.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given a $0.4439 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a yield of 4.3%. This is a boost from Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.11. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria’s payout ratio is currently 39.23%.

About Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, SA provides retail banking, wholesale banking, and asset management services in the United States, Spain, Mexico, Turkey, South America, and internationally. The company offers savings account, demand deposits, and time deposits; and loan products, such as residential mortgages, other households, credit card loans, loans to enterprises and public sector, as well as consumer finance.