Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN) Hits New 12-Month High Following Analyst Upgrade

Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday after Royal Bank Of Canada upgraded the stock from a sector perform rating to an outperform rating. The stock traded as high as $13.19 and last traded at $12.9860, with a volume of 2006290 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $12.75.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Zacks Research lowered shares of Banco Santander from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 18th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Banco Santander in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Banco Santander in a report on Monday, February 16th. Barclays lowered Banco Santander from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, DZ Bank downgraded Banco Santander from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SAN. Orca Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Banco Santander by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Orca Wealth Management LLC now owns 65,572 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $852,000 after buying an additional 894 shares during the last quarter. Composition Wealth LLC lifted its position in Banco Santander by 8.3% during the fourth quarter. Composition Wealth LLC now owns 12,442 shares of the bank’s stock worth $146,000 after buying an additional 952 shares during the period. West Family Investments Inc. grew its holdings in Banco Santander by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. West Family Investments Inc. now owns 49,186 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $515,000 after buying an additional 965 shares during the period. Riversedge Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Banco Santander by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Riversedge Advisors LLC now owns 29,426 shares of the bank’s stock worth $345,000 after acquiring an additional 987 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stratos Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Banco Santander by 6.3% during the fourth quarter. Stratos Investment Management LLC now owns 16,870 shares of the bank’s stock worth $198,000 after purchasing an additional 1,005 shares during the period. 9.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Banco Santander Trading Up 1.7%

The company has a market capitalization of $192.97 billion, a PE ratio of 12.83, a PEG ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.72. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $12.16 and its 200-day moving average price is $10.84.

Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The bank reported $0.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $18.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.89 billion. Banco Santander had a return on equity of 12.14% and a net margin of 18.85%. As a group, analysts predict that Banco Santander, S.A. will post 0.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Banco Santander Company Profile

Banco Santander, SA (NYSE: SAN) is a Spanish multinational banking group headquartered in Santander, Spain. Founded in 1857, the bank has grown from a regional institution into one of Europe’s largest banking groups, operating a diversified financial services platform that serves retail, small and medium-sized enterprises, and large corporate clients. Santander is publicly listed in Spain and maintains American Depositary Receipts on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker SAN.

The group’s core activities include retail and commercial banking—offering deposit accounts, payment services, mortgages, personal and auto loans, and small business financing—alongside corporate and investment banking services for larger institutional clients.