Trexquant Investment LP Raises Holdings in Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP)

Trexquant Investment LP increased its position in Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) by 9.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 146,164 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,432 shares during the period. Trexquant Investment LP owned 0.20% of Popular worth $13,748,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. TCW Group Inc. increased its position in Popular by 15.2% during the third quarter. TCW Group Inc. now owns 94,815 shares of the bank’s stock worth $9,507,000 after buying an additional 12,494 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Popular by 7.3% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,054,849 shares of the bank’s stock worth $105,769,000 after acquiring an additional 71,782 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Popular by 83.9% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 9,546 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $957,000 after acquiring an additional 4,354 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in Popular by 56.6% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 603 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV boosted its stake in Popular by 1,719.6% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 37,775 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,553,000 after purchasing an additional 35,699 shares during the period. 87.27% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Popular Stock Performance

Popular stock opened at $91.11 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $6.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.77. Popular, Inc. has a one year low of $80.60 and a one year high of $106.81. The business has a fifty day moving average of $97.64 and a two-hundred day moving average of $96.88.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $2.51 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.04 by $0.47. Popular had a net margin of 14.15% and a return on equity of 11.89%. Sell-side analysts predict that Popular, Inc. will post 10.06 EPS for the current year.

Popular Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.07%. Popular’s payout ratio is 32.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on BPOP. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Popular from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group began coverage on Popular in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $104.00 price target on the stock. Barclays upped their price objective on Popular from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Popular from $116.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Popular from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Popular presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $113.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Popular

In related news, EVP Gilberto Monzon sold 9,600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.57, for a total value of $984,672.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 39,170 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,017,666.90. This represents a 19.68 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Eduardo J. Negron sold 10,000 shares of Popular stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.02, for a total transaction of $1,040,200.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 32,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,418,721.32. The trade was a 23.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Popular 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.