QRG Capital Management Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Banco Santander, S.A. $SAN

QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN) by 5.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,335,164 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 67,240 shares during the quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Banco Santander were worth $15,661,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Banco Santander in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Banco Santander in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Binnacle Investments Inc grew its holdings in shares of Banco Santander by 96.2% in the third quarter. Binnacle Investments Inc now owns 3,227 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 1,582 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its holdings in shares of Banco Santander by 11,752.0% in the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 2,963 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 2,938 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Banco Santander in the fourth quarter valued at $42,000. 9.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on SAN. Santander reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Banco Santander in a research note on Tuesday. Barclays lowered shares of Banco Santander from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised shares of Banco Santander from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Banco Santander from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, April 26th. Finally, Kepler Capital Markets raised shares of Banco Santander from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Banco Santander currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Banco Santander Trading Up 2.8%

Shares of SAN opened at $11.88 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $174.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.81, a P/E/G ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 0.73. Banco Santander, S.A. has a 12-month low of $7.14 and a 12-month high of $13.24. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $11.71 and a 200-day moving average price of $11.49.

Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The bank reported $0.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $17.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.66 billion. Banco Santander had a net margin of 26.92% and a return on equity of 12.23%. Analysts predict that Banco Santander, S.A. will post 1.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Banco Santander Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.1473 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 255.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 4th. Banco Santander’s payout ratio is currently 17.36%.

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.