Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (NYSE:BBVA) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (NYSE:BBVA) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the four ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has given a hold recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company.

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Hsbc Global Res raised Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com lowered shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Kepler Capital Markets upgraded shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BBVA opened at $13.73 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $80.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.58, a P/E/G ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.26. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $12.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $11.02. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria has a 52-week low of $9.23 and a 52-week high of $14.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (NYSE:BBVA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The bank reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria will post 1.59 earnings per share for the current 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 paid a $0.4439 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 4.3%. This is an increase from Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.11. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.18%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans bought a new stake in shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria in the third quarter valued at approximately $146,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 21.1% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 377,530 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,092,000 after purchasing an additional 65,852 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. bought a new stake in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria in the 3rd quarter valued at $136,000. Cerity Partners LLC grew its position in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 37.3% in the 3rd 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. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can increased its holdings in shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 304,192 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,367,000 after purchasing an additional 19,314 shares during the period. 2.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.