Alphavalue | During the last decade, Banco Santander has successfully diversified constructing a portfolio of low risk/high growth activities. Although it should guarantee the longevity of the group, it has not translated into profits for smaller shareholders.
M&G Valores | A sustained annual growth in profits of 4% is well below that of previous bull cycles in the stock market, but seems realistic in the current situation. We have on one hand the modest growth of developed economies (secular stagnation), and on the other the composition of the Ibex dominated by regulated sectors, with modest growth, and the banks.
Sam Theodore (Scope Ratings) | In this merger of German banks, the less problematic partner appears to be Commerzbank (graded A by Scope with stable perspective) rather than Deutsche Bank (graded BBB+ with negative perspective).
Spanish banks are last in Eurozone in Tier 1 and penultimate in regulatory capital. But they have an unquestionable competitive advantage: they are the only transparent ones in the Eurozone for the ECB and for the other investors being the only audited ones. There are no skeletons in the closet even if there is less capital to compensate.
Santander | The publication of the 2018 results have practically finished, and Europe´s company profits have shown their resilience in a global scenario dominated by the uncertainty generated by the fear of a “trade war”, volatility in emerging markets, currency weakness, Brexit, the increase in populism in the South of Europe…
The Q418 results have been a negative catalyst for Spanish banks and almost all of them (with the notable exception of BBVA) have seen how the stock market advances accumulated over the course of the year have vanished to the point of returning negative.The recurrent tendencies of incomes have remained moderately positive, as happened in 2018, but, in opinion of Santander Research, net financial margins remain vulnerable.
J.L. M. Campuzano (Spanish Banking Association) | Según los datos publicados la semana pasada por el Banco de España la tasa de morosidad cayó en octubre hasta un 6,08%, 1,7 puntos más baja que en diciembre y muy por debajo del 8,41% de hace un año.
William Chislett | In the Franco regime and well into the 1980s, the lion’s share of Spanish banking business in a strongly protected and highly profitable market was in the hands of the so-called Big Seven and those banks, affiliated to or associated with them. The Big Seven have morphed over the past 30 years into the Big Two, as a result of a wave of mergers, after Spain joined the European Economic Community (EEC) in 1986.
“Never again Spaniards will have to pay the mortgage stamp duty”. With these words the Spanish president Pedro Sánchez announced a decree law and gave a new twist to the story of who should be responsible for this tax, just a few hours after the Supreme Court decided that it will be the customer’s duty. The way in which the highest court has managed the decision making process puts into question its credibility.
Mari Pinardo | The financial and stock market situation of the banks has returned to the front page after the Supreme Court decided, re-decided and then postponed its sentence on who ought to pay the stamp duty on mortgages. The decision has caused our banks to lose 9.066 billion euros in stock market capitalisation in a week.