Banco Bradesco S.A. (NYSE:BBD) Short Interest Down 24.7% in February

Banco Bradesco S.A. (NYSE:BBD) saw a significant decline in short interest in the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 154,230,000 shares, a decline of 24.7% from the February 13th total of 204,950,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 44,640,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.5 days. Approximately 1.5% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on BBD shares. HSBC upgraded shares of Banco Bradesco from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $2.80 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Banco Bradesco from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 25th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Banco Bradesco from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $2.40 to $2.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th.

Institutional Trading of Banco Bradesco

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BBD. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Banco Bradesco by 2.6% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 44,989,586 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $120,122,000 after purchasing an additional 1,139,470 shares during the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund increased its holdings in shares of Banco Bradesco by 85.5% in the 4th quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 3,936,542 shares of the bank’s stock worth $7,519,000 after acquiring an additional 1,814,009 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Banco Bradesco by 71.0% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 15,778,647 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $42,715,000 after buying an additional 6,551,698 shares during the last quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC acquired a new position in shares of Banco Bradesco during the fourth quarter valued at $66,000. Finally, Banco Santander S.A. lifted its stake in shares of Banco Bradesco by 402.4% in the 4th quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 1,802,819 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,443,000 after acquiring an additional 1,443,986 shares during the period.

Banco Bradesco Trading Down 0.2 %

BBD stock traded down $0.01 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $2.21. The stock had a trading volume of 41,547,115 shares, compared to its average volume of 29,550,602. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $2.04 and its 200 day moving average price is $2.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.48, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.72. Banco Bradesco has a 12-month low of $1.84 and a 12-month high of $2.98. The firm has a market cap of $23.47 billion, a PE ratio of 7.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 0.94.

Banco Bradesco (NYSE:BBD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 7th. The bank reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.09. Banco Bradesco had a net margin of 8.46% and a return on equity of 11.43%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Banco Bradesco will post 0.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Banco Bradesco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $0.0033 dividend. This is a boost from Banco Bradesco’s previous monthly dividend of $0.00. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $0.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.78%. Banco Bradesco’s payout ratio is 6.67%.

About Banco Bradesco

Banco Bradesco SA, together with its subsidiaries, provides various banking products and services to individuals, corporates, and businesses in Brazil and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Banking and Insurance. It provides current, savings, click, and salary accounts; real estate credit, vehicle financing, payroll loans, mortgage loans, microcredit, leasing, and personal and installment credit; overdraft and agribusiness loans; debit and business cards; financial and security services; consortium products; car, personal accident, dental, travel, and life insurance; investment products; pension products; foreign currency exchange services; capitalization bonds; and internet banking services.