Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Raises Stock Holdings in Popular, Inc. $BPOP

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its holdings in Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) by 14.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 52,803 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 6,526 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Popular were worth $6,575,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of BPOP. Royal Bank of Canada raised its holdings in shares of Popular by 23.1% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 94,352 shares of the bank’s stock worth $8,715,000 after buying an additional 17,729 shares during the period. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd bought a new position in Popular in the first quarter worth approximately $257,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in Popular by 60.6% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 223,530 shares of the bank’s stock worth $20,647,000 after purchasing an additional 84,327 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth bought a new position in Popular in the first quarter worth approximately $207,000. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Popular in the second quarter worth approximately $252,000. 87.27% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Popular Trading Up 2.5%

Shares of NASDAQ BPOP opened at $149.56 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.65 billion, a PE ratio of 11.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 0.63. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $141.15 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $131.85. Popular, Inc. has a 12-month low of $100.54 and a 12-month high of $152.95.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The bank reported $3.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.30 by $0.48. The business had revenue of $816.08 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $866.54 million. Popular had a return on equity of 14.53% and a net margin of 20.10%.During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.56 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Popular, Inc. will post 15.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Popular Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 29th. Popular’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Popular from $153.00 to $164.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Weiss Ratings raised Popular from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on Popular from $141.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Popular from $170.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Zacks Research cut Popular from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $168.73.

Insider Buying and Selling at Popular

In other Popular news, Director Alejandro M. Sanchez sold 1,451 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.85, for a total transaction of $204,373.35. Following the sale, the director owned 3,415 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $481,002.75. This trade represents a 29.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Alejandro M. Ballester sold 23,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total value of $3,450,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 34,588 shares in the company, valued at $5,188,200. This trade represents a 39.94% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 30,651 shares of company stock valued at $4,575,135. 2.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Popular

Popular, Inc, headquartered in San Juan, Puerto Rico, is a financial holding company and a leading provider of banking services in the United States mainland and Puerto Rico. Through its primary subsidiaries—Banco Popular de Puerto Rico and Popular Bank—the company delivers comprehensive commercial and consumer banking solutions. It offers deposit products, lending facilities, cash management services and payment-processing solutions designed for individuals, small businesses and large corporations.

The company’s product suite encompasses checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, residential and commercial mortgage loans, business lines of credit and credit cards.