Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (NYSE:BBVA) Hits New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (NYSE:BBVA) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $14.34 and last traded at $14.31, with a volume of 351312 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $13.80.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Kepler Capital Markets upgraded Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com cut Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria Stock Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average price of $12.08 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $10.74. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The company has a market capitalization of $83.86 billion, a PE ratio of 7.94, a PEG ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.26.

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%. Analysts predict that Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. will post 1.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 19.7% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 10,866 shares of the bank’s stock worth $106,000 after purchasing an additional 1,792 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its stake in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 37.3% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 393,458 shares of the bank’s stock worth $4,265,000 after purchasing an additional 106,869 shares during the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC lifted its stake in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 10.0% during the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 47,217 shares of the bank’s stock worth $459,000 after purchasing an additional 4,302 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 21.1% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 377,530 shares of the bank’s stock worth $4,092,000 after purchasing an additional 65,852 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HB Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria in the 4th quarter valued at about $124,000. Institutional investors own 2.96% of the company’s stock.

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.