Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (NYSE:BBVA) Short Interest Update

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (NYSE:BBVA) was the target of a significant drop in short interest during the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,080,000 shares, a drop of 35.2% from the January 31st total of 4,750,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,870,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.6 days. Approximately 0.1% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria Trading Down 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE:BBVA traded down $0.21 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $13.18. 2,917,586 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,187,386. The business’s fifty day moving average is $11.40 and its 200-day moving average is $10.55. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria has a 52-week low of $9.23 and a 52-week high of $13.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $76.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.28, a P/E/G ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (NYSE:BBVA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The bank reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.04. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria had a return on equity of 17.49% and a net margin of 28.10%. As a group, analysts forecast that Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria will post 1.59 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BBVA. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its stake in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 120.7% in the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 3,540 shares of the bank’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 1,936 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank lifted its stake in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 96.7% in the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 3,616 shares of the bank’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 1,778 shares during the period. Avion Wealth purchased a new position in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria during the fourth quarter valued at $39,000. Barclays PLC purchased a new position in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria during the third quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria during the fourth quarter valued at $49,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 2.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on BBVA. Kepler Capital Markets raised Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Hsbc Global Res raised Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

About Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, SA provides retail banking, wholesale banking, and asset management services in the United States, Spain, Mexico, Turkey, South America, and internationally. The company offers savings account, demand deposits, and time deposits; and loan products, such as residential mortgages, other households, credit card loans, loans to enterprises and public sector, as well as consumer finance.