Advanced Portfolio Management LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN)

Advanced Portfolio Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN) by 6.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 800,000 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 50,000 shares during the quarter. Banco Santander comprises approximately 4.3% of Advanced Portfolio Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. Advanced Portfolio Management LLC’s holdings in Banco Santander were worth $3,648,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. increased its position in shares of Banco Santander by 197.0% during the fourth quarter. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. now owns 557,390 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,542,000 after buying an additional 369,700 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Banco Santander by 62.2% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 105,415 shares of the bank’s stock worth $479,000 after acquiring an additional 40,438 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Banco Santander in the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,319,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Banco Santander by 55.5% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,301,711 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $16,839,000 after purchasing an additional 1,178,449 shares during the period. Finally, Summit Global Investments grew its position in shares of Banco Santander by 69.1% during the 4th quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 227,478 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,037,000 after purchasing an additional 92,987 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 9.19% of the company’s stock.

Banco Santander Trading Up 2.7 %

NYSE SAN opened at $7.16 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $6.68 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $5.56. Banco Santander, S.A. has a twelve month low of $4.27 and a twelve month high of $7.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 2.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.83. The company has a market capitalization of $108.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.63, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.81.

Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The bank reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22. Banco Santander had a return on equity of 11.90% and a net margin of 15.88%. The company had revenue of $17.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.94 billion. Research analysts forecast that Banco Santander, S.A. will post 0.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Banco Santander Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be paid a $0.1152 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. This is a positive change from Banco Santander’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.08. Banco Santander’s payout ratio is 19.28%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Banco Santander from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. StockNews.com upgraded Banco Santander from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of Banco Santander from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy”.

Banco Santander Profile

Banco Santander, SA provides various financial services worldwide. The company operates through Retail Banking, Santander Corporate & Investment Banking, Wealth Management & Insurance, and PagoNxt segments. It offers demand and time deposits, mutual funds, and current and savings accounts; mortgages, consumer finance, loans, and various financing solutions; and project finance, debt capital markets, global transaction banking, and corporate finance services.