Billionaire Ken Griffin Just Bought A Boatload Of This Bank’s Shares

Billionaire Ken Griffin of Citadel Investment Group has boosted his position in Popular Inc (NASDAQ:BPOP). In a newly-amended filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Griffin disclosed owning 5.79 million shares of Popular Inc (NASDAQ:BPOP), representing a massive increase from 3.77 million shares the investor held as of March 31. The current stake equates to 5.6% of the company’s common stock, and is passive by nature.

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Ken Griffin launched Citadel Investment Group in 1990. The fund manager boasts a public equity portfolio valued at an impressive $89.81 billion, and his primary investment sectors are consumer discretionary, technology, and finance. In this article, we’ll also talk about Griffin’s top banking stock picks, including Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) and Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS).

Popular Inc (NASDAQ:BPOP) is a $3.50-billion market cap banking firm that operates in Puerto Rico and the United States. Popular Inc (NASDAQ:BPOP) posted strong financial results for the first quarter of 2015, with net income increasing to $74.8 million, compared to $48.9 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2014. In February, Popular Inc (NASDAQ:BPOP) subsidiary Banco Popular de Puerto Rico (“BPPR”), in an alliance with co-bidders, acquired certain assets and all deposits of Doral Bank from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), as receiver. This acquisition allowed the company to record goodwill of about $43 million and a core deposit intangible asset of about $24 million. Shares of Popular Inc (NASDAQ:BPOP) have increased by 5.83% during the past year. Among the largest shareholders of Popular Inc (NASDAQ:BPOP) is Ric Dillon’s Diamond Hill Capital, which holds 5.80 million shares as of the end of March.