Cibc World Markets Corp Takes Position in Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP)

Cibc World Markets Corp acquired a new stake in Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 64,200 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $6,039,000. Cibc World Markets Corp owned 0.09% of Popular at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. TCW Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Popular by 15.2% in the third quarter. TCW Group Inc. now owns 94,815 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $9,507,000 after acquiring an additional 12,494 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Popular by 7.3% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,054,849 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $105,769,000 after purchasing an additional 71,782 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its position in Popular by 284.9% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 72,403 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $7,260,000 after purchasing an additional 53,590 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its position in Popular by 83.9% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 9,546 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $957,000 after purchasing an additional 4,354 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Popular by 56.6% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 603 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. 87.27% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Popular Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ BPOP opened at $90.96 on Thursday. Popular, Inc. has a 52 week low of $80.60 and a 52 week high of $106.81. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $98.59 and its 200 day moving average is $97.27. The company has a market cap of $6.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.63, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.77.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $2.51 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.04 by $0.47. Popular had a net margin of 14.15% and a return on equity of 11.89%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Popular, Inc. will post 10.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Popular Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.08%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. Popular’s payout ratio is 32.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on BPOP. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Popular from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Popular from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Popular from $116.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Popular from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on shares of Popular in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $104.00 price objective for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $113.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Popular

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

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.