Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN) Holdings Cut by HighPoint Advisor Group LLC

HighPoint Advisor Group LLC cut its stake in shares of Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN) by 13.9% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 31,534 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 5,089 shares during the quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Banco Santander were worth $144,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in SAN. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in Banco Santander during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Banco Santander by 2,226.3% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 5,839 shares of the bank’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 5,588 shares during the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in Banco Santander in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Advisors Preferred LLC acquired a new position in Banco Santander during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of Banco Santander in the third quarter valued at approximately $45,000. 9.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Banco Santander Stock Performance

SAN opened at $5.88 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $6.23 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $5.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.83, a current ratio of 2.24 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The company has a market capitalization of $89.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.81. Banco Santander, S.A. has a 1-year low of $4.27 and a 1-year high of $7.16.

Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The bank reported $0.21 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.21. Banco Santander had a return on equity of 11.90% and a net margin of 15.88%. Research analysts predict that Banco Santander, S.A. will post 0.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Banco Santander Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be issued a $0.1152 dividend. This is an increase from Banco Santander’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.08. This represents a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. Banco Santander’s payout ratio is presently 19.28%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on SAN. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Banco Santander from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 24th. StockNews.com raised Banco Santander from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Banco Santander from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy”.

Banco Santander Company Profile

Banco Santander, SA provides various financial services worldwide. The company operates through Retail Banking, Santander Corporate & Investment Banking, Wealth Management & Insurance, and PagoNxt segments. It offers demand and time deposits, mutual funds, and current and savings accounts; mortgages, consumer finance, loans, and various financing solutions; and project finance, debt capital markets, global transaction banking, and corporate finance services.