Stephens Inc. AR Sells 94 Shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR)

Stephens Inc. AR reduced its position in Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR) by 7.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,151 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 94 shares during the quarter. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions were worth $260,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Qsemble Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in the third quarter worth about $1,412,000. Atria Investments Inc increased its stake in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 9.7% in the 3rd quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 29,638 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $6,373,000 after acquiring an additional 2,610 shares during the last quarter. Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Broadridge Financial Solutions in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $483,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 53.5% during the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 10,768 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,434,000 after acquiring an additional 3,753 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Miracle Mile Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 98.0% during the 4th quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 2,433 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $550,000 after acquiring an additional 1,204 shares during the last quarter. 90.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Brett Keller sold 5,442 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $240.40, for a total transaction of $1,308,256.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 15,536 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,734,854.40. This represents a 25.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Thomas P. Carey sold 15,710 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.32, for a total value of $3,618,327.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 12,146 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,797,466.72. This trade represents a 56.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 21,666 shares of company stock worth $5,050,766 over the last three months. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Trading Down 1.0 %

Broadridge Financial Solutions stock opened at $240.40 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $232.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $222.64. The company has a market capitalization of $28.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.62 and a beta of 1.08. Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. has a 52 week low of $188.30 and a 52 week high of $244.47. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The business services provider reported $1.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $0.24. Broadridge Financial Solutions had a return on equity of 44.40% and a net margin of 11.36%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.92 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. will post 8.53 EPS for the current year.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be issued a $0.88 dividend. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. Broadridge Financial Solutions’s payout ratio is currently 55.09%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on BR. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, November 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Broadridge Financial Solutions from $231.00 to $249.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group raised their price objective on Broadridge Financial Solutions from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $215.00 target price on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Broadridge Financial Solutions from $207.00 to $222.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $239.17.

About Broadridge Financial Solutions

Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc provides investor communications and technology-driven solutions for the financial services industry. The company's Investor Communication Solutions segment processes and distributes proxy materials to investors in equity securities and mutual funds, as well as facilitates related vote processing services; and distributes regulatory reports, class action, and corporate action/reorganization event information, as well as tax reporting solutions.