Banco Santander Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:SAN)

Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Monday. Stock investors bought 4,108 put options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 229% compared to the typical daily volume of 1,249 put options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Banco Santander Trading Down 2.6 %

NYSE:SAN traded down $0.16 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $5.72. The company had a trading volume of 3,559,340 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,299,268. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $6.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $5.32. The company has a market capitalization of $86.60 billion, a PE ratio of 6.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.83, a current ratio of 2.24 and a quick ratio of 0.23. Banco Santander has a 52 week low of $4.27 and a 52 week high of $7.16.

Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The bank reported $0.21 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21. Banco Santander had a return on equity of 11.90% and a net margin of 15.88%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Banco Santander will post 0.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Banco Santander Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a $0.1152 dividend. This represents a yield of 2.4%. This is a boost from Banco Santander’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.08. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. Banco Santander’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.28%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Banco Santander

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Groupama Asset Managment purchased a new stake in Banco Santander during the third quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC increased its stake in shares of Banco Santander by 106.3% in the 4th quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC now owns 9,101,145 shares of the bank’s stock worth $41,501,000 after purchasing an additional 4,689,461 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in Banco Santander by 46.4% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 10,775,261 shares of the bank’s stock worth $49,135,000 after purchasing an additional 3,413,685 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in Banco Santander by 55.5% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,301,711 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $16,839,000 after purchasing an additional 1,178,449 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC increased its position in Banco Santander by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 21,953,176 shares of the bank’s stock worth $100,106,000 after buying an additional 1,059,449 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 9.19% of the company’s stock.

About Banco Santander

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.