Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior, S. A. (NYSE:BLX) Short Interest Up 107.8% in March

Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior, S. A. (NYSE:BLX) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 186,200 shares, an increase of 107.8% from the February 28th total of 89,600 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 127,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.5 days. Currently, 0.7% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior, S. A. Stock Performance

Shares of Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior, S. A. stock traded down $0.97 during trading on Friday, hitting $36.82. 195,771 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 123,643. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a current ratio of 1.77. Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior, S. A. has a 12 month low of $27.37 and a 12 month high of $42.88. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $38.34 and its 200 day moving average is $35.56. The stock has a market cap of $1.35 billion, a PE ratio of 6.73 and a beta of 1.13.

Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior, S. A. (NYSE:BLX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The bank reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.33. Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior, S. A. had a net margin of 24.29% and a return on equity of 16.01%. The firm had revenue of $78.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $54.84 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior, S. A. will post 4.6 EPS for the current year.

Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior, S. A. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a dividend of $0.625 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $2.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.79%. This is an increase from Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior, S. A.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior, S. A.’s payout ratio is presently 44.64%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior, S. A. during the fourth quarter valued at about $74,000. Longboard Asset Management LP acquired a new position in Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior, S. A. during the 4th quarter valued at about $202,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior, S. A. by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 14,497 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $516,000 after buying an additional 779 shares during the period. Motley Fool Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior, S. A. during the 4th quarter worth about $1,603,000. Finally, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior, S. A. by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 124,864 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,441,000 after acquiring an additional 900 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 19.47% of the company’s stock.

Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior, S. A. Company Profile

Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior, S. A., a multinational bank, primarily engages in the financing of foreign trade in Latin America and the Caribbean. The company operates in two segments, Commercial and Treasury. It offers bilateral loans; structured loans including syndicated and clubbed, such as acquisition and pre-export financing, A/B loan financing, bridge loans, and liability management; and project financing.