Short Interest in Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR) Grows By 10.5%

Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR) saw a large growth in short interest in August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,370,000 shares, a growth of 10.5% from the August 15th total of 1,240,000 shares. Approximately 1.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 539,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.5 days.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of BR traded up $0.19 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $211.15. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 92,222 shares, compared to its average volume of 522,888. The company has a market cap of $24.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.00 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $210.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $203.25. Broadridge Financial Solutions has a 52-week low of $166.73 and a 52-week high of $223.81.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The business services provider reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.49 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.96 billion. Broadridge Financial Solutions had a net margin of 10.73% and a return on equity of 42.77%. The company’s revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.21 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Broadridge Financial Solutions will post 8.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 12th will be given a dividend of $0.88 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 12th. This is a positive change from Broadridge Financial Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.67%. Broadridge Financial Solutions’s payout ratio is presently 60.07%.

Insider Activity

In other news, President Christopher John Perry sold 31,539 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.37, for a total value of $6,540,242.43. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 67,215 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,938,374.55. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Broadridge Financial Solutions news, VP Laura Matlin sold 673 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.00, for a total transaction of $145,368.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 5,530 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,194,480. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, President Christopher John Perry sold 31,539 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.37, for a total transaction of $6,540,242.43. Following the sale, the president now directly owns 67,215 shares in the company, valued at $13,938,374.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 134,386 shares of company stock worth $28,112,824. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Broadridge Financial Solutions

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. LifeSteps Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in the first quarter worth $32,000. EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in the second quarter worth $32,000. Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in the second quarter worth $32,000. Manchester Capital Management LLC increased its position in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 57.1% during the 4th quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 165 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. Finally, New Covenant Trust Company N.A. purchased a new position in Broadridge Financial Solutions during the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. 90.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on BR. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $185.00 price objective on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research report on Tuesday, June 11th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $224.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $239.00 to $246.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $213.33.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Company Profile

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.