Bright Horizons Family Solutions (NYSE:BFAM) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Sell

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions (NYSE:BFAM) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report released on Wednesday.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions from $145.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions from $137.00 to $149.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions from $108.00 to $102.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Robert W. Baird upgraded Bright Horizons Family Solutions from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $140.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Baird R W raised Bright Horizons Family Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Bright Horizons Family Solutions has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.75.

Bright Horizons Family Solutions Price Performance

Bright Horizons Family Solutions stock opened at $109.70 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $117.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $123.04. Bright Horizons Family Solutions has a 12-month low of $91.61 and a 12-month high of $141.90. The stock has a market cap of $6.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.13 and a beta of 1.44.

Bright Horizons Family Solutions (NYSE:BFAM) last posted its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $1.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $719.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $713.16 million. Bright Horizons Family Solutions had a return on equity of 13.23% and a net margin of 4.44%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.78 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Bright Horizons Family Solutions will post 3.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Bright Horizons Family Solutions

In other Bright Horizons Family Solutions news, Director Mary Ann Tocio sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.71, for a total value of $573,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 25,257 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,897,230.47. The trade was a 16.53 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Mary Lou Burke sold 800 shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions stock in a transaction on Monday, October 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.94, for a total value of $109,552.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 31,025 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,248,563.50. This represents a 2.51 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.22% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bright Horizons Family Solutions

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of BFAM. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in Bright Horizons Family Solutions by 8.7% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 212,879 shares of the company’s stock valued at $23,434,000 after acquiring an additional 17,100 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions by 850.0% in the 2nd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 342 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 306 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake in shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions by 9.1% in the 2nd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 12,676 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,395,000 after purchasing an additional 1,057 shares in the last quarter. Heritage Family Offices LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Bright Horizons Family Solutions during the 2nd quarter worth about $310,000. Finally, Triodos Investment Management BV increased its position in Bright Horizons Family Solutions by 4.0% during the 2nd quarter. Triodos Investment Management BV now owns 13,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,431,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares in the last quarter.

About Bright Horizons Family Solutions

Bright Horizons Family Solutions Inc provides early education and childcare, back-up care, educational advisory, and other workplace solutions services for employers and families in the United States, Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Australia, and India. The company operates in three segments: Full Service Center-Based Child Care, Back-Up Care, and Educational Advisory and Other Services.