Inceptionr LLC Sells 1,962 Shares of Popular, Inc. $BPOP

Inceptionr LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) by 19.5% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 8,113 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 1,962 shares during the period. Inceptionr LLC’s holdings in Popular were worth $894,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Popular by 52.8% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,432,599 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $129,722,000 after purchasing an additional 495,325 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in shares of Popular by 363.4% during the 2nd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 228,028 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $25,131,000 after buying an additional 178,820 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management raised its position in shares of Popular by 19.7% during the 2nd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 710,860 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $78,344,000 after buying an additional 116,960 shares in the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp bought a new stake in shares of Popular during the 1st quarter worth $10,122,000. Finally, Invenomic Capital Management LP grew its position in Popular by 136.1% in the first quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP now owns 169,183 shares of the bank’s stock worth $15,627,000 after acquiring an additional 97,531 shares in the last quarter. 87.27% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Popular Trading Down 0.2%

NASDAQ BPOP opened at $114.54 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $7.64 billion, a PE ratio of 10.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.47 and a beta of 0.72. Popular, Inc. has a 1-year low of $78.23 and a 1-year high of $129.32. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $118.42 and a 200-day moving average of $115.02.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The bank reported $3.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.04 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $720.83 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $803.95 million. Popular had a return on equity of 13.46% and a net margin of 17.63%.Popular’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.16 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Popular, Inc. will post 10.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Popular Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 5th will be issued a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 5th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Popular’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.55%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on BPOP. Hovde Group restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Popular in a research report on Friday, August 29th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Popular from $135.00 to $127.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Popular in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Popular in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Popular from $150.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $133.56.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Gilberto Monzon sold 18,001 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.47, for a total transaction of $2,240,584.47. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 24,773 shares in the company, valued at $3,083,495.31. This represents a 42.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Richard L. Carrion sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.50, for a total transaction of $2,837,500.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 193,020 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,907,770. The trade was a 11.47% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 44,001 shares of company stock valued at $5,192,924 over the last three months. 2.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.