Popular, Inc. $BPOP Shares Acquired by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its stake in Popular, Inc. (NASDAQ:BPOP) by 1,975.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 46,277 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 44,047 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans owned approximately 0.07% of Popular worth $5,878,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in BPOP. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in shares of Popular by 23.1% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 94,352 shares of the bank’s stock worth $8,715,000 after purchasing an additional 17,729 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in Popular in the 1st quarter worth about $257,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in Popular by 60.6% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 223,530 shares of the bank’s stock worth $20,647,000 after buying an additional 84,327 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth acquired a new position in shares of Popular during the first quarter valued at approximately $207,000. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Popular in the second quarter valued at approximately $252,000. 87.27% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on BPOP. Credit Suisse Group set a $156.00 price target on Popular in a research report on Tuesday. Piper Sandler started coverage on shares of Popular in a report on Thursday, January 15th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $152.00 target price for the company. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Popular from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Popular in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Popular from $153.00 to $164.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $155.73.

Popular Stock Up 2.2%

Shares of BPOP opened at $145.97 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $9.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.85, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.63. Popular, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $78.23 and a fifty-two week high of $146.95. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $126.40 and its 200 day moving average price is $121.59.

Popular (NASDAQ:BPOP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The bank reported $3.38 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.02 by $0.36. Popular had a net margin of 18.75% and a return on equity of 13.87%. The company had revenue of $815.98 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $811.55 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.51 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Popular, Inc. will post 10.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Popular Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 5th were issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 5th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Popular’s dividend payout ratio is 24.35%.

Key Stories Impacting Popular

Here are the key news stories impacting Popular this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks upgraded Popular from Hold to Strong Buy and moved BPOP onto its Rank #1 value list—an upgrade that tends to attract value-focused and quant-driven buyers. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Independent coverage shows analysts maintaining a Buy consensus on BPOP, reinforcing demand from institutional and retail investors looking for banks with attractive valuations. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Market commentary highlights BPOP hitting a 52‑week high and discusses whether the rally can continue—this momentum narrative can draw momentum and breakout buyers. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage noting analyst target adjustments and a fair‑value reset is reframing the narrative on BPOP, supporting renewed interest from value and target‑price driven investors. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks published a deeper note weighing BPOP’s appeal to value investors using its rank system—useful analysis but not an immediate catalyst. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: A few unrelated headlines that reference the “Popular” name (e.g., an ice‑cream chain Chapter 11 filing) could create short‑term headline noise or confusion but don’t reflect bank fundamentals. Read More.

Insider Buying and Selling at Popular

In related news, Director Richard L. Carrion sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.50, for a total transaction of $2,837,500.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 193,020 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,907,770. This represents a 11.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Adorno Denissa Rodriguez sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.84, for a total transaction of $114,840.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 2,604 shares in the company, valued at approximately $299,043.36. This trade represents a 27.75% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 28,360 shares of company stock valued at $3,265,040 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 2.09% of the company’s stock.

Popular Company Profile

Popular, Inc, headquartered in San Juan, Puerto Rico, is a financial holding company and a leading provider of banking services in the United States mainland and Puerto Rico. Through its primary subsidiaries—Banco Popular de Puerto Rico and Popular Bank—the company delivers comprehensive commercial and consumer banking solutions. It offers deposit products, lending facilities, cash management services and payment-processing solutions designed for individuals, small businesses and large corporations.

The company’s product suite encompasses checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, residential and commercial mortgage loans, business lines of credit and credit cards.