Short Interest in Banco de Chile (NYSE:BCH) Grows By 41.9%

Banco de Chile (NYSE:BCH) was the target of a large increase in short interest in the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 329,200 shares, an increase of 41.9% from the August 31st total of 232,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 168,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.0 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Banco de Chile from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th.

Banco de Chile Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE BCH traded down $0.12 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $25.52. 147,308 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 195,986. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.29, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a current ratio of 1.47. Banco de Chile has a 52 week low of $19.20 and a 52 week high of $25.97. The company has a market cap of $12.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.59 and a beta of 0.40. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $24.50 and a 200-day moving average price of $23.57.

Banco de Chile (NYSE:BCH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The bank reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.04. Banco de Chile had a return on equity of 22.72% and a net margin of 28.99%. The company had revenue of $810.22 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $767.15 million. Research analysts anticipate that Banco de Chile will post 2.48 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BCH. Baillie Gifford & Co. purchased a new position in shares of Banco de Chile in the second quarter worth approximately $60,462,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Banco de Chile by 143.6% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 280,716 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,479,000 after acquiring an additional 165,467 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Banco de Chile in the 1st quarter worth $6,189,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Banco de Chile by 61.5% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 243,009 shares of the bank’s stock worth $5,499,000 after purchasing an additional 92,532 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in Banco de Chile by 24.3% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 214,398 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,852,000 after purchasing an additional 41,894 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 1.24% of the company’s stock.

About Banco de Chile

Banco de Chile, together with its subsidiaries, provides various banking services to customers in Chile. The company offers checking and debit accounts, debit and credit cards, and lines of credit; mortgage, consume, commercial, general purpose mortgage loans, and finance leases; and factoring services, mutual fund management, stock brokerage, foreign trade, payments and collections, insurance brokerage, including life and general insurance, as well as time deposits, savings instruments, and foreign currency services through branches under the Banco de Chile and Banco Edwards brands.