Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN) Reaches New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE:SAN) shares reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The company traded as high as $6.22 and last traded at $6.18, with a volume of 589653 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $6.03.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on SAN shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Banco Santander from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Banco Santander from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Banco Santander from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Banco Santander from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy”.

Banco Santander Stock Performance

The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $5.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $4.95. The stock has a market cap of $95.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.63, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a current ratio of 2.24, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.83.

Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The bank reported $0.21 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21. Banco Santander had a return on equity of 11.90% and a net margin of 15.88%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Banco Santander, S.A. will post 0.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Banco Santander

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in Banco Santander by 1.4% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 143,585,152 shares of the bank’s stock worth $732,284,000 after acquiring an additional 2,011,150 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of Banco Santander by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 21,953,176 shares of the bank’s stock worth $100,106,000 after purchasing an additional 1,059,449 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Banco Santander by 46.4% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 10,775,261 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $49,135,000 after purchasing an additional 3,413,685 shares during the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment purchased a new position in shares of Banco Santander in the third quarter valued at $53,000. Finally, Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC raised its stake in shares of Banco Santander by 106.3% during the 4th quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC now owns 9,101,145 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $41,501,000 after purchasing an additional 4,689,461 shares during the period. 9.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Banco Santander

Banco Santander, SA provides various financial services worldwide. The company operates through Retail Banking, Santander Corporate & Investment Banking, Wealth Management & Insurance, and PagoNxt segments. It offers demand and time deposits, mutual funds, and current and savings accounts; mortgages, consumer finance, loans, and various financing solutions; and project finance, debt capital markets, global transaction banking, and corporate finance services.