Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN) Stock Rating Upgraded by Kepler Capital Markets

Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN) was upgraded by equities researchers at Kepler Capital Markets from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on SAN. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Banco Santander from a “strong-buy” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Banco Santander in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. DZ Bank cut Banco Santander from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Barclays lowered Banco Santander from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Banco Santander from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 18th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Banco Santander Stock Performance

Shares of SAN stock opened at $12.24 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $182.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.02, a PEG ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.73. Banco Santander has a fifty-two week low of $4.85 and a fifty-two week high of $12.31. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $11.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $10.10.

Banco Santander (NYSE:SAN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The bank reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by ($0.02). Banco Santander had a net margin of 17.90% and a return on equity of 11.68%. The business had revenue of $26.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.32 billion. As a group, equities analysts predict that Banco Santander will post 0.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Banco Santander

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Banco Santander by 77.4% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 419,635 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,812,000 after buying an additional 183,051 shares during the period. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC increased its holdings in Banco Santander by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 71,990 shares of the bank’s stock worth $482,000 after acquiring an additional 2,566 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its stake in Banco Santander by 271.2% during the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 10,276 shares of the bank’s stock worth $69,000 after acquiring an additional 7,508 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its holdings in Banco Santander by 65.3% during the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 71,169 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $477,000 after purchasing an additional 28,107 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Banco Santander by 358.5% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 14,177 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $95,000 after buying an additional 11,085 shares in the last quarter. 9.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Banco Santander

Banco Santander, SA (NYSE: SAN) is a Spanish multinational banking group headquartered in Santander, Spain. Founded in 1857, the bank has grown from a regional institution into one of Europe’s largest banking groups, operating a diversified financial services platform that serves retail, small and medium-sized enterprises, and large corporate clients. Santander is publicly listed in Spain and maintains American Depositary Receipts on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker SAN.

The group’s core activities include retail and commercial banking—offering deposit accounts, payment services, mortgages, personal and auto loans, and small business financing—alongside corporate and investment banking services for larger institutional clients.