QRG Capital Management Inc. Grows Position in Banco Santander, S.A. $SAN

QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN) by 5.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,335,164 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 67,240 shares during the quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Banco Santander were worth $15,661,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Composition Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Banco Santander by 8.3% in the fourth quarter. Composition Wealth LLC now owns 12,442 shares of the bank’s stock worth $146,000 after acquiring an additional 952 shares during the period. West Family Investments Inc. lifted its stake in Banco Santander by 2.0% in the third quarter. West Family Investments Inc. now owns 49,186 shares of the bank’s stock worth $515,000 after acquiring an additional 965 shares during the period. Riversedge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Banco Santander by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Riversedge Advisors LLC now owns 29,426 shares of the bank’s stock worth $345,000 after acquiring an additional 987 shares during the period. Stratos Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Banco Santander by 6.3% in the fourth quarter. Stratos Investment Management LLC now owns 16,870 shares of the bank’s stock worth $198,000 after acquiring an additional 1,005 shares during the period. Finally, B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Banco Santander by 5.5% in the third quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 19,756 shares of the bank’s stock worth $207,000 after acquiring an additional 1,036 shares during the period. 9.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Banco Santander Trading Up 2.8%

Shares of NYSE:SAN opened at $11.88 on Wednesday. Banco Santander, S.A. has a twelve month low of $7.14 and a twelve month high of $13.24. The company’s 50 day moving average is $11.71 and its 200 day moving average is $11.49. The company has a market cap of $174.44 billion, a PE ratio of 9.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 0.73.

Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The bank reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.29 by ($0.02). Banco Santander had a return on equity of 12.23% and a net margin of 26.92%.The business had revenue of $17.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.66 billion. Equities research analysts predict that Banco Santander, S.A. will post 1.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Banco Santander Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 4th will be given a $0.1473 dividend. This represents a yield of 255.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 4th. Banco Santander’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.36%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on SAN. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Banco Santander in a report on Monday, February 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada upgraded shares of Banco Santander from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Kepler Capital Markets upgraded shares of Banco Santander from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Banco Santander from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, April 26th. Finally, Barclays downgraded shares of Banco Santander from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Banco Santander Company Profile

Banco Santander, SA (NYSE: SAN) is a Spanish multinational banking group headquartered in Santander, Spain. Founded in 1857, the bank has grown from a regional institution into one of Europe’s largest banking groups, operating a diversified financial services platform that serves retail, small and medium-sized enterprises, and large corporate clients. Santander is publicly listed in Spain and maintains American Depositary Receipts on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker SAN.

The group’s core activities include retail and commercial banking—offering deposit accounts, payment services, mortgages, personal and auto loans, and small business financing—alongside corporate and investment banking services for larger institutional clients.