Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (NYSE:BBVA) Short Interest Update

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (NYSE:BBVA) saw a large drop in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,590,000 shares, a drop of 29.3% from the February 28th total of 2,250,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,550,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.6 days. Approximately 0.0% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 20.6% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 33,545 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $326,000 after buying an additional 5,735 shares in the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP raised its position in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 10.3% during the fourth quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 70,543 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $686,000 after purchasing an additional 6,614 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria during the fourth quarter worth about $223,000. CSS LLC IL purchased a new position in shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria in the 4th quarter worth about $342,000. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. increased its position in shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 122.2% during the 4th quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 307,720 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,991,000 after purchasing an additional 169,220 shares during the last quarter. 2.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria Price Performance

NYSE:BBVA traded down $0.12 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $13.62. The stock had a trading volume of 3,554,604 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,814,642. The firm has a market capitalization of $79.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.52, a P/E/G ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.26. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria has a one year low of $9.23 and a one year high of $14.84. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $12.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $11.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.27.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (NYSE:BBVA) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The bank reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.04. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria had a return on equity of 17.49% and a net margin of 28.10%. Research analysts forecast that Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria will post 1.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given a $0.4439 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 4.3%. This is a boost from Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.11. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria’s dividend payout ratio is 39.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Kepler Capital Markets upgraded Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

About Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, SA provides retail banking, wholesale banking, and asset management services in the United States, Spain, Mexico, Turkey, South America, and internationally. The company offers savings account, demand deposits, and time deposits; and loan products, such as residential mortgages, other households, credit card loans, loans to enterprises and public sector, as well as consumer finance.