Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (NYSE:BBVA) Short Interest Down 64.7% in October

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (NYSE:BBVA) saw a significant drop in short interest in October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,070,000 shares, a drop of 64.7% from the September 30th total of 5,870,000 shares. Approximately 0.0% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,460,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.4 days.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of BBVA traded down $0.11 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $9.72. 855,769 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,471,662. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $10.35 and its 200 day moving average is $10.47. The company has a market cap of $56.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.30. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria has a fifty-two week low of $7.76 and a fifty-two week high of $12.20.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (NYSE:BBVA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The bank reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.03. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria had a return on equity of 16.40% and a net margin of 27.55%. The company had revenue of $9.93 billion during the quarter. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.36 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate 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. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be given a $0.3244 dividend. The ex-dividend date 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 currently 34.69%.

Institutional Trading of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its position in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 172.8% during the 2nd quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,096,738 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $31,060,000 after purchasing an additional 1,961,553 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 5.9% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 11,103,927 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $111,371,000 after buying an additional 619,836 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 9.9% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,412,058 shares of the bank’s stock worth $44,253,000 after purchasing an additional 396,829 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates lifted its stake in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 91.0% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 776,389 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $8,416,000 after acquiring an additional 369,971 shares during the period. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria by 24.2% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,890,079 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $18,957,000 after acquiring an additional 368,660 shares during the period. 2.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on BBVA shares. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Citigroup upgraded Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria Company Profile

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.