Banco De Chile (NYSE:BCH) Posts Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.01 EPS

Banco De Chile (NYSE:BCH) posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The bank reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by ($0.01), FiscalAI reports. Banco De Chile had a net margin of 33.09% and a return on equity of 23.94%. The business had revenue of $321.27 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $869.80 million.

Banco De Chile Stock Up 3.8%

BCH traded up $1.38 during trading on Thursday, reaching $37.99. 466,853 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 478,771. The stock has a market cap of $19.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.61 and a beta of 0.22. Banco De Chile has a twelve month low of $27.08 and a twelve month high of $46.77. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $38.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $38.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a current ratio of 1.59.

Banco De Chile Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a special dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 13th. Investors of record on Monday, March 30th were issued a dividend of $2.1877 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 30th. Banco De Chile’s payout ratio is presently 59.14%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on BCH. UBS Group set a $48.00 price objective on shares of Banco De Chile and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Banco De Chile from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Banco De Chile from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Banco De Chile from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $36.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Banco De Chile in a report on Monday, April 20th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $40.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Banco De Chile

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BCH. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its holdings in Banco De Chile by 199.1% during the third quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 352,465 shares of the bank’s stock worth $10,680,000 after buying an additional 234,619 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its holdings in shares of Banco De Chile by 177.7% in the third quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 298,085 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $9,032,000 after purchasing an additional 190,741 shares during the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. increased its holdings in shares of Banco De Chile by 29.5% in the fourth quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 835,782 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $31,755,000 after purchasing an additional 190,567 shares during the last quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC increased its holdings in shares of Banco De Chile by 128.4% in the second quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 197,931 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,021,000 after purchasing an additional 111,253 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its holdings in shares of Banco De Chile by 186.1% in the third quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 119,096 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,609,000 after purchasing an additional 77,463 shares during the last quarter. 1.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Banco De Chile Company Profile

Banco de Chile (NYSE: BCH) is a leading Chilean financial institution headquartered in Santiago. Founded in 1893, the bank is one of the country’s oldest and most established banking groups, serving a broad spectrum of individual, corporate and institutional clients. It is publicly listed and operates under Chilean banking regulations while participating in international capital markets.

The bank’s core businesses include retail banking, commercial and corporate banking, and investment banking.