Marshall Wace LLP Buys 117,045 Shares of Banco de Chile (NYSE:BCH)

Marshall Wace LLP lifted its stake in Banco de Chile (NYSE:BCH) by 36.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 440,004 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 117,045 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP owned about 0.09% of Banco de Chile worth $9,979,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BCH. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Banco de Chile by 293.4% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 128,448 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,251,000 after purchasing an additional 95,797 shares during the period. Barclays PLC raised its stake in shares of Banco de Chile by 81.8% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 11,151 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $282,000 after buying an additional 5,016 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Banco de Chile by 39.8% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 15,574 shares of the bank’s stock worth $353,000 after acquiring an additional 4,434 shares during the period. Matthews International Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Banco de Chile during the 4th quarter valued at about $400,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Banco de Chile in the fourth quarter valued at about $94,000. 1.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Banco de Chile Stock Performance

NYSE BCH opened at $28.41 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $14.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.32, a PEG ratio of 6.08 and a beta of 0.31. The company has a current ratio of 1.51, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92. Banco de Chile has a 1-year low of $21.76 and a 1-year high of $28.64. The company has a 50 day moving average of $26.75 and a 200-day moving average of $24.72.

Banco de Chile Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 21st were paid a $2.1037 dividend. This represents a yield of 5.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 21st. Banco de Chile’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.55%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com downgraded Banco de Chile from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Banco de Chile from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th.

About Banco de Chile

Banco de Chile, together with its subsidiaries, provides various banking services to customers in Chile. The company offers checking and debit accounts, debit and credit cards, and lines of credit; mortgage, consume, commercial, general purpose mortgage loans, and finance leases; and factoring services, mutual fund management, stock brokerage, foreign trade, payments and collections, insurance brokerage, including life and general insurance, as well as time deposits, savings instruments, and foreign currency services through branches under the Banco de Chile and Banco Edwards brands.