Banco Santander Brasil (NYSE:BSBR) Rating Lowered to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Banco Santander Brasil (NYSE:BSBR) was downgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Sunday.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on BSBR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Banco Santander Brasil from $7.00 to $6.50 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Banco Santander Brasil from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Banco Santander Brasil from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, July 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $6.50.

Banco Santander Brasil Stock Performance

NYSE BSBR traded up $0.26 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $5.39. 2,219,559 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,841,586. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.25. Banco Santander Brasil has a 52 week low of $4.62 and a 52 week high of $7.32. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $5.39 and its 200-day simple moving average is $5.98.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Mario Roberto Opice Leao acquired 276,851 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $5.38 per share, for a total transaction of $1,489,458.38. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 536,751 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,887,720.38. This trade represents a 106.52% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Eduardo Alvarez Garrido sold 7,500 shares of Banco Santander Brasil stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.43, for a total transaction of $40,725.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 24,701 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $134,126.43. This trade represents a 23.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have purchased 500,251 shares of company stock worth $2,651,888. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Banco Santander Brasil

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of BSBR. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new position in Banco Santander Brasil during the fourth quarter valued at $9,772,000. Alpine Global Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Banco Santander Brasil during the fourth quarter worth about $4,735,000. Aquamarine Financial Cayman Ltd raised its position in shares of Banco Santander Brasil by 8.6% during the 4th quarter. Aquamarine Financial Cayman Ltd now owns 9,770,322 shares of the bank’s stock worth $59,697,000 after purchasing an additional 775,000 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in shares of Banco Santander Brasil by 17.0% during the 3rd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,957,288 shares of the bank’s stock worth $16,531,000 after purchasing an additional 430,531 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in Banco Santander Brasil by 2,671.0% in the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 326,451 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,825,000 after buying an additional 314,670 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 14.53% of the company’s stock.

About Banco Santander Brasil

Banco Santander Brasil SA is the Brazilian unit of Spain-based Grupo Santander and one of the country’s major commercial banks. Headquartered in São Paulo, the bank serves a broad client base across Brazil through an integrated network of branches, ATMs and digital channels. Its shares are represented abroad via American Depositary Shares listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker BSBR.

The bank offers a full range of financial products and services for retail, small and medium-sized enterprises, and corporate clients.