Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Raises Stock Position in Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP)

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA grew its stake in Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) by 3.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,854 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in Popular were worth $927,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in Popular by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 2,239 shares of the bank’s stock worth $211,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management lifted its holdings in shares of Popular by 56.7% during the fourth quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 326 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Popular by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 20,953 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,971,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Popular by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 30,709 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,888,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Popular by 56.6% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 603 shares of the bank’s stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.27% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Popular from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Popular from $116.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Barclays increased their price objective 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. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Popular in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $104.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Popular from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $113.00.

Popular Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:BPOP opened at $82.50 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $5.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.62. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $96.78 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $96.62. Popular, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $78.59 and a fifty-two week high of $106.81.

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

Popular Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.39%. Popular’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.71%.

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.