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4 Reasons to Add Popular (BPOP) Stock to Your Portfolio Now

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Popular Inc. (BPOP - Free Report) looks like an attractive investment option right now based on a solid earnings outlook. The company has been witnessing upward earnings estimate revisions, of late, reflecting analysts’ optimism regarding its earnings growth potential.

The stock’s Zacks Consensus Estimate for current-year EPS has been revised 2.6% upward, over the past 30 days. As a result, the stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

The company’s price performance also looks impressive. Its shares have rallied 35.6% over the past year versus the industry’s decline of 5.9%.

What Makes the Stock an Attractive Pick?

Earnings Growth: Popular recorded 4.2% earnings growth over the last three-five years. The momentum is likely to continue in the near term as well, as reflected by the company’s projected EPS growth rate of 26% and 10.4% for 2019 and 2020, respectively.

Moreover, Popular has a splendid earnings surprise history. Its earnings surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the trailing four quarters, with average beat being 9.5%.

Also, the company’s long-term (three-five years) estimated EPS growth rate of 25.9% promises rewards for investors.

Revenue Growth: Popular’s revenues witnessed a CAGR of 7.3% over the last five years (2014-2018). Further, the top line will likely be up 3.2% in 2019 and 2.6% in 2020.

Stock Trades at a Discount: Popular’s current price-earnings (P/E) and price-book (P/B) ratios are lower than the respective industry averages. The company’s P/B ratio of 1.09 compares with the industry average of 1.30. Also, its P/E ratio of 9.23 comes in lower than the industry average of 12.6.

Moreover, the stock has a Value Score of A. The Value Style Score condenses all valuation metrics into one actionable score that helps investors steer clear of ‘value traps’ and identify stocks that are trading at a discount.

Favorable VGM Score: Popular has a VGM Score of A. Our research shows that stocks with a VGM Score of A or B, when combined with a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2, offer the best upside potential.

Other Key Picks

Capital City Bank Group’s (CCBG - Free Report) shares have gained 5.6%, over the past year. The stock currently sports a Zacks Rank of 1. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Chemung Financial Corp’s (CHMG - Free Report) shares have appreciated 12.8%, in the past year. At present, the stock flaunts a Zacks Rank of 1.

City Holding Company’s (CHCO - Free Report) shares have jumped 19.3% in a year’s time. Currently, it sports a Zacks Rank of 1.

Zacks' Top 10 Stocks for 2019

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