Williamson Legacy Group LLC Decreases Position in Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP)

Williamson Legacy Group LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) by 6.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,556 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 495 shares during the quarter. Williamson Legacy Group LLC’s holdings in Popular were worth $711,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BPOP. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Popular during the third quarter worth approximately $1,468,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Popular by 28.9% during the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,918 shares of the bank’s stock worth $493,000 after purchasing an additional 1,103 shares during the last quarter. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust lifted its stake in Popular by 84.3% during the third quarter. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust now owns 75,509 shares of the bank’s stock worth $7,571,000 after purchasing an additional 34,537 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its position in Popular by 124.6% during the third quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 73,775 shares of the bank’s stock worth $7,397,000 after buying an additional 40,930 shares during the period. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in Popular by 40.0% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 40,870 shares of the bank’s stock worth $4,098,000 after buying an additional 11,678 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.27% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on BPOP. UBS Group began coverage on Popular in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $104.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Popular from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Popular from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Barclays boosted their target price on Popular from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Popular from $116.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $112.25.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Gilberto Monzon sold 9,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $4,017,666.90. This represents a 19.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Eduardo J. Negron sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.02, for a total value of $1,040,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 32,866 shares in the company, valued at $3,418,721.32. This represents a 23.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.09% of the company’s stock.

Popular Stock Performance

BPOP opened at $100.43 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $99.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $97.97. The company has a market cap of $7.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.73, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.82. Popular, Inc. has a one year low of $80.60 and a one year high of $106.81.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $2.51 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.47. Popular had a return on equity of 11.89% and a net margin of 14.15%. On average, analysts predict that Popular, Inc. will post 10.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Popular Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be given a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.79%. Popular’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.71%.

About Popular

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.