Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOPGet Free Report) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,160,000 shares, an increase of 7.4% from the December 31st total of 1,080,000 shares. Currently, 1.7% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 529,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.2 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on BPOP. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Popular in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $104.00 target price on the stock. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of Popular from $112.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Popular from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Popular from $116.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Popular from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Popular has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $112.25.

View Our Latest Research Report on BPOP

Insider Buying and Selling at Popular

In related news, EVP Eduardo J. Negron sold 10,000 shares of Popular stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.02, for a total transaction of $1,040,200.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 32,866 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,418,721.32. The trade was a 23.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Beatriz Castellvi sold 3,500 shares of Popular stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.16, for a total transaction of $347,060.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 25,115 shares in the company, valued at $2,490,403.40. The trade was a 12.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 15,325 shares of company stock worth $1,565,581 in the last quarter. 2.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Popular

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Popular by 0.5% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,056,377 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $207,475,000 after purchasing an additional 10,599 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Popular by 7.3% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,054,849 shares of the bank’s stock worth $105,769,000 after buying an additional 71,782 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in Popular by 8.1% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 902,931 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $90,537,000 after acquiring an additional 67,620 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC raised its stake in Popular by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 629,537 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $63,124,000 after acquiring an additional 22,355 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its position in Popular by 18.3% during the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 548,057 shares of the bank’s stock worth $54,954,000 after acquiring an additional 84,839 shares during the period. 87.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Popular Stock Performance

BPOP opened at $99.91 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $97.36 and a 200-day moving average of $97.44. The company has a market capitalization of $7.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.67, a PEG ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.82. Popular has a 1-year low of $80.60 and a 1-year high of $106.46.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOPGet Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $2.51 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.04 by $0.47. Popular had a net margin of 14.15% and a return on equity of 11.89%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Popular will post 10.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Popular Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th were issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.80%. This is a boost from Popular’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. Popular’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.71%.

Popular Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.

Further Reading

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