New York State Common Retirement Fund Has $40.33 Million Holdings in Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP)

New York State Common Retirement Fund cut its stake in shares of Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) by 6.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 491,416 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 33,218 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund’s holdings in Popular were worth $40,331,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Popular during the fourth quarter worth $1,563,000. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Popular by 64.9% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 726,743 shares of the bank’s stock worth $45,792,000 after buying an additional 286,119 shares in the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of Popular by 253.3% during the fourth quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 18,568 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,524,000 after buying an additional 13,312 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Popular by 34.2% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 503,917 shares of the bank’s stock worth $31,752,000 after buying an additional 128,304 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia acquired a new position in shares of Popular during the third quarter worth $1,151,000. 87.27% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Popular Price Performance

BPOP stock opened at $88.36 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.39 billion, a PE ratio of 13.11 and a beta of 0.82. The company’s 50-day moving average is $84.55 and its 200-day moving average is $78.83. Popular, Inc. has a 1 year low of $52.32 and a 1 year high of $89.70.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The bank reported $1.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.89. The company had revenue of $702.92 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $699.76 million. Popular had a net margin of 11.95% and a return on equity of 11.95%. On average, analysts anticipate that Popular, Inc. will post 8.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Popular Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, March 14th were given a $0.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 13th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.81%. Popular’s payout ratio is 36.80%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BPOP has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com upgraded Popular from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Popular from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Popular from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $110.00 price target (up previously from $103.00) on shares of Popular in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Barclays began coverage on shares of Popular in a research report on Friday, March 8th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $99.00 price target on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $99.22.

Insider Activity at Popular

In related news, EVP Luis E. Cestero sold 599 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.65, for a total value of $51,304.35. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 26,529 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,272,208.85. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Luis E. Cestero sold 599 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.65, for a total value of $51,304.35. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 26,529 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,272,208.85. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Luis E. Cestero sold 4,641 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.42, for a total transaction of $391,793.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,772 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,260,092.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Popular

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.