Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (NYSE:BBVA) Short Interest Up 9.8% in September

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (NYSE:BBVA) saw a large growth in short interest in the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,270,000 shares, a growth of 9.8% from the August 31st total of 5,710,000 shares. Currently, 0.1% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 1,330,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.7 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on BBVA shares. BNP Paribas downgraded Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 12th. Royal Bank of Canada raised Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Citigroup raised Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 176,047 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,604,000 after buying an additional 1,658 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 8.2% during the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 14,111 shares of the bank’s stock worth $129,000 after purchasing an additional 1,065 shares during the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC increased its position in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 51,444 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $469,000 after buying an additional 1,072 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors acquired a new position in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria during the 4th quarter valued at about $193,000. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. acquired a new position in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria during the 4th quarter valued at about $4,309,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 2.96% of the company’s stock.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria Stock Performance

NYSE:BBVA traded down $0.56 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $10.28. The stock had a trading volume of 1,450,485 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,493,836. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria has a 52 week low of $7.76 and a 52 week high of $12.20. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $10.36 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $10.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $60.01 billion, a PE ratio of 6.99, a PEG ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.30.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (NYSE:BBVA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The bank reported $0.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $9.93 billion for the quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria had a return on equity of 16.40% and a net margin of 27.55%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.36 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria will post 1.75 EPS for the current year.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a Semi-Annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.3244 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 9th. This represents a yield of 5.6%. This is a boost from Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria’s previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.11. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria’s payout ratio is presently 35.37%.

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.