Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) Short Interest Update

Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 862,500 shares, a growth of 58.7% from the May 31st total of 543,600 shares. Currently, 1.2% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 316,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.7 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Citigroup upped their price objective on Popular from $103.00 to $107.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Popular from $105.00 to $103.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Popular from $96.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Popular from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Hovde Group increased their price target on Popular from $112.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $99.67.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Manuel Chinea sold 12,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.70, for a total transaction of $1,088,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 27,086 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,456,700.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Gilberto Monzon sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.80, for a total value of $429,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 48,320 shares in the company, valued at $4,145,856. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Manuel Chinea sold 12,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.70, for a total value of $1,088,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 27,086 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,456,700.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.09% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of BPOP. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Popular during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $66,881,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Popular by 21.7% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,599,881 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $226,829,000 after buying an additional 642,694 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Popular by 57.2% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,008,732 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $88,859,000 after buying an additional 366,870 shares during the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Popular by 395.0% in the fourth quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 429,197 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $35,224,000 after buying an additional 342,492 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in shares of Popular by 64.9% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 726,743 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $45,792,000 after buying an additional 286,119 shares during the last quarter. 87.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Popular Stock Up 2.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:BPOP traded up $2.33 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $88.43. 693,706 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 392,105. The company has a market cap of $6.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.12, a P/E/G ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.79. Popular has a one year low of $59.15 and a one year high of $93.09. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $87.74 and its 200-day simple moving average is $84.93.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The bank reported $1.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.96 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $714.56 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $706.00 million. Popular had a return on equity of 11.67% and a net margin of 11.95%. Analysts anticipate that Popular will post 8.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Popular Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, May 30th will be given a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 30th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.80%. Popular’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.80%.

Popular Company Profile

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.