Banco Bradesco S.A. (NYSE:BBD) Short Interest Up 27.9% in February

Banco Bradesco S.A. (NYSE:BBD) saw a significant increase in short interest in February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 204,950,000 shares, an increase of 27.9% from the January 31st total of 160,250,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 43,050,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.8 days.

Institutional Trading of Banco Bradesco

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BBD. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Banco Bradesco during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Traveka Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Banco Bradesco during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp raised its stake in Banco Bradesco by 54.5% during the fourth quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp now owns 17,012 shares of the bank’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 6,000 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Banco Bradesco in the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of Banco Bradesco by 78.2% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 20,055 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 8,801 shares during the period.

Banco Bradesco Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of BBD opened at $2.07 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.48, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $2.02 and a 200-day simple moving average of $2.33. Banco Bradesco has a 1-year low of $1.84 and a 1-year high of $2.98. The stock has a market cap of $21.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 0.94.

Banco Bradesco (NYSE:BBD) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 7th. The bank reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.09. Banco Bradesco had a net margin of 8.46% and a return on equity of 11.43%. Equities analysts forecast that Banco Bradesco will post 0.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Banco Bradesco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $0.0033 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This is an increase from Banco Bradesco’s previous monthly dividend of $0.00. This represents a $0.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.90%. Banco Bradesco’s dividend payout ratio is 6.67%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on BBD shares. HSBC raised shares of Banco Bradesco from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $2.80 target price for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Banco Bradesco from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $2.40 to $2.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Banco Bradesco from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 25th.

About Banco Bradesco

Banco Bradesco SA, together with its subsidiaries, provides various banking products and services to individuals, corporates, and businesses in Brazil and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Banking and Insurance. It provides current, savings, click, and salary accounts; real estate credit, vehicle financing, payroll loans, mortgage loans, microcredit, leasing, and personal and installment credit; overdraft and agribusiness loans; debit and business cards; financial and security services; consortium products; car, personal accident, dental, travel, and life insurance; investment products; pension products; foreign currency exchange services; capitalization bonds; and internet banking services.