Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (NYSE:BBVA) Short Interest Up 10.2% in August

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (NYSE:BBVA) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 4,330,000 shares, a growth of 10.2% from the August 15th total of 3,930,000 shares. Currently, 0.1% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 1,000,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.3 days.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE BBVA traded down $0.03 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $7.65. 762,460 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,434,846. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20. The company has a market cap of $45.61 billion, a PE ratio of 6.37, a PEG ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.32. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $7.78 and a 200-day moving average price of $7.38. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria has a 12 month low of $4.36 and a 12 month high of $8.18.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (NYSE:BBVA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 28th. The bank reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $7.83 billion during the quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria had a net margin of 26.54% and a return on equity of 14.53%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.30 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria will post 1.42 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BBVA has been the subject of several recent research reports. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria in a report on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Barclays initiated coverage on Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria in a report on Friday, May 26th. They issued an “equal weight” rating for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley downgraded Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $6.34.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 165.0% during the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,373,714 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $19,097,000 after purchasing an additional 4,590,973 shares in the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund acquired a new position in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $26,563,000. Jane Street Group LLC increased its stake in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 317.1% during the 2nd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 4,055,509 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $18,331,000 after purchasing an additional 3,083,261 shares in the last quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. increased its stake in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 969.3% during the 1st quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 1,763,567 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $12,433,000 after purchasing an additional 1,598,646 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BlackRock Inc. increased its stake in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 44.7% during the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 4,947,777 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $37,999,000 after purchasing an additional 1,529,476 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 2.83% of the company’s stock.

About Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, SA, together with its subsidiaries, provides retail banking, wholesale banking, and asset management services. It offers current accounts; and demand, savings, overnight, time, term, and subordinated deposits. The company also provides loan products; deals in securities; leasing, factoring, brokerage, and asset management services; and manages pension and investment funds.