Vest Financial LLC Buys 11,927 Shares of Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP)

Vest Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) by 80.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 26,735 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,927 shares during the quarter. Vest Financial LLC’s holdings in Popular were worth $2,515,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BPOP. Financial Management Professionals Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Popular in the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in Popular in the third quarter worth about $35,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of Popular during the third quarter worth about $47,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of Popular during the third quarter worth about $81,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Popular during the fourth quarter valued at about $166,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.27% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on BPOP shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Popular from $116.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on Popular from $112.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Popular from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Barclays boosted their price target on Popular from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Popular from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $112.25.

Popular Trading Down 0.3 %

Popular stock opened at $103.37 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $7.37 billion, a PE ratio of 12.08, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.82. Popular, Inc. has a 12 month low of $80.60 and a 12 month high of $106.46. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $97.54 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $97.56.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $2.51 earnings per share (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%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Popular, Inc. will post 10.06 EPS for the current year.

Popular Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. This is a boost from Popular’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.71%. Popular’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.71%.

Insider Activity at Popular

In related news, EVP Gilberto Monzon sold 9,600 shares of Popular stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 39,170 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,017,666.90. This trade represents a 19.68 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Eduardo J. Negron sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 32,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,418,721.32. This represents a 23.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Popular 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.