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

Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 834,600 shares, a drop of 14.1% from the January 15th total of 972,100 shares. Currently, 1.2% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 500,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.7 days.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Gilberto Monzon sold 9,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.57, for a total transaction of $984,672.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 39,170 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,017,666.90. This trade represents a 19.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Eduardo J. Negron sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.02, for a total value of $1,040,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 32,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,418,721.32. This represents a 23.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.09% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Popular

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BPOP. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Popular during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $79,842,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in Popular by 57.1% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,418,729 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $133,446,000 after purchasing an additional 515,798 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in Popular by 53.8% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,312,952 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $123,496,000 after buying an additional 459,231 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Popular by 235.5% during the 3rd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 332,093 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $33,299,000 after buying an additional 233,119 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in Popular by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 4,192,769 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $394,373,000 after buying an additional 201,067 shares during the last quarter. 87.27% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Popular Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:BPOP traded up $1.41 on Friday, hitting $104.41. 446,595 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 459,677. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $97.92 and its 200 day moving average is $97.55. The company has a market capitalization of $7.45 billion, a PE ratio of 12.20, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 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:BPOP) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $2.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.47. Popular had a return on equity of 11.89% and a net margin of 14.15%. On average, analysts anticipate that Popular will post 10.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BPOP has been the subject of several recent research reports. StockNews.com upgraded Popular from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on 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 target price on Popular from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Popular from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Popular from $116.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $112.25.

About Popular

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.