Banco Santander grew second-quarter revenue, net interest income, underlying profit and underlying EPS by 6%, 7%, 17% and 20% respectively, keeping the European bank a long-running favorite of CNBC host Jim Cramer. First-half underlying profit reached €7.3 billion, a 14% increase and the best figure in the bank's history, as Santander added 12 million customers in the first half to reach a 182 million strong customer base. The results reflect the bank's geographic diversification: second-quarter profit rose 13% in Brazil and 19% in Mexico on higher loan volumes that offset lower net interest income, while loan loss provisions climbed 9% amid trends in Argentina that also led Santander to halt lending there. Management is targeting an efficiency ratio of 36% under its One Transformation strategy while contending with currency risk from Latin America. Hedge fund sentiment was little changed, with 24 funds disclosing a stake in the second quarter versus 25 in the first, and the shares trade at a forward P/E of 10.27 and a price-to-book ratio of 1.67.
Banco Santander SA ADRSantander posted record €7.3B first-half underlying profit, up 14%, with Q2 revenue, NII, profit and EPS all rising.
Banco Santander Brasil SA ADR
