Puerto Rican financial institution Popular (NASDAQ: BPOP) met Wall Street’s revenue expectations in Q1 CY2026, with sales up 10.1% year on year to $835.8 million. Its GAAP profit of $3.78 per share was 13.3% above analysts’ consensus estimates.
Is now the time to buy Popular? Find out by accessing our full research report, it’s free.
Popular (BPOP) Q1 CY2026 Highlights:
- Net Interest Income: $670.2 million vs analyst estimates of $654.9 million (10.7% year-on-year growth, 2.3% beat)
- Net Interest Margin: 3.7% vs analyst estimates of 3.9% (20.5 basis point miss)
- Revenue: $835.8 million vs analyst estimates of $837.7 million (10.1% year-on-year growth, in line)
- EPS (GAAP): $3.78 vs analyst estimates of $3.34 (13.3% beat)
- Tangible Book Value per Share: $84.98 vs analyst estimates of $84.99 (21.9% year-on-year growth, in line)
- Market Capitalization: $9.64 billion
“We delivered a strong start to 2026, with net income of $246 million and earnings per share of $3.78, up 38% and 48%, respectively, year-over-year, reflecting disciplined execution across our businesses and continued momentum throughout the franchise,” said Javier D. Ferrer, President and Chief Executive Officer of Popular, Inc.
Company Overview
Founded in 1893 as the first bank in Puerto Rico to serve the working class, Popular (NASDAQ: BPOP) is a financial holding company that provides retail, mortgage, and commercial banking services primarily in Puerto Rico and the mainland United States.
Sales Growth
From lending activities to service fees, most banks build their revenue model around two income sources. Interest rate spreads between loans and deposits create the first stream, with the second coming from charges on everything from basic bank accounts to complex investment banking transactions. Unfortunately, Popular’s 9.3% annualized revenue growth over the last five years was mediocre. This wasn’t a great result compared to the rest of the banking sector, but there are still things to like about Popular.
We at StockStory place the most emphasis on long-term growth, but within financials, a half-decade historical view may miss recent interest rate changes, market returns, and industry trends. Popular’s recent performance shows its demand has slowed as its annualized revenue growth of 8.1% over the last two years was below its five-year trend. We’re wary when companies in the sector see decelerations in revenue growth, as it could signal changing consumer tastes aided by low switching costs. 
Note: Quarters not shown were determined to be outliers, impacted by outsized investment gains/losses that are not indicative of the recurring fundamentals of the business.
This quarter, Popular’s year-on-year revenue growth was 10.1%, and its $835.8 million of revenue was in line with Wall Street’s estimates.
Net interest income made up 77.7% of the company’s total revenue during the last five years, meaning lending operations are Popular’s largest source of revenue.
Markets consistently prioritize net interest income growth over fee-based revenue, recognizing its superior quality and recurring nature compared to the more unpredictable non-interest income streams.
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Tangible Book Value Per Share (TBVPS)
The balance sheet drives banking profitability since earnings flow from the spread between borrowing and lending rates. As such, valuations for these companies concentrate on capital strength and sustainable equity accumulation potential.
This explains why tangible book value per share (TBVPS) stands as the premier banking metric. TBVPS strips away questionable intangible assets, revealing concrete per-share net worth that investors can trust. On the other hand, EPS is often distorted by mergers and flexible loan loss accounting. TBVPS provides clearer performance insights.
Popular’s TBVPS grew at a solid 6.7% annual clip over the last five years. TBVPS growth has also accelerated recently, growing by 20.4% annually over the last two years from $58.64 to $84.98 per share.
Over the next 12 months, Consensus estimates call for Popular’s TBVPS to grow by 12% to $95.21, mediocre growth rate.
Key Takeaways from Popular’s Q1 Results
It was good to see Popular beat analysts’ EPS expectations this quarter. We were also happy its net interest income outperformed Wall Street’s estimates. Overall, this print had some key positives. Investors were likely hoping for more, and shares traded down 2.2% to $145 immediately following the results.
Is Popular an attractive investment opportunity at the current price? What happened in the latest quarter matters, but not as much as longer-term business quality and valuation, when deciding whether to invest in this stock. We cover that in our actionable full research report which you can read here (it’s free).
