Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN) Stake Increased by Huntington National Bank

Huntington National Bank raised its stake in shares of Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN) by 14.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 19,459 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,393 shares during the quarter. Huntington National Bank’s holdings in Banco Santander were worth $89,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Banco Santander by 23.2% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,024,556 shares of the bank’s stock worth $5,225,000 after purchasing an additional 193,255 shares in the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Banco Santander by 22.1% in the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 29,381 shares of the bank’s stock worth $150,000 after acquiring an additional 5,311 shares in the last quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Banco Santander by 22.6% in the 3rd quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 30,187 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $154,000 after acquiring an additional 5,565 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Banco Santander by 143.0% during the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 345,524 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,757,000 after acquiring an additional 203,322 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in Banco Santander in the third quarter worth $3,531,000. 9.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Banco Santander from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Banco Santander from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Banco Santander from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy”.

Banco Santander Stock Down 10.6 %

Banco Santander stock opened at $5.88 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $89.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.08, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $6.23 and a 200-day simple moving average of $5.32. Banco Santander, S.A. has a one year low of $4.27 and a one year high of $7.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.83, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 2.24.

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

Banco Santander Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $0.1152 per share. This represents a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. This is a positive change from Banco Santander’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.08. Banco Santander’s payout ratio is 19.28%.

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.