StockNews.com Downgrades Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) to Hold

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) was downgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $231.00 to $249.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Broadridge Financial Solutions from $246.00 to $259.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Wolfe Research reissued a “peer perform” rating on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a report on Thursday, December 12th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Broadridge Financial Solutions from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Broadridge Financial Solutions from $207.00 to $222.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $239.17.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Stock Performance

Broadridge Financial Solutions stock opened at $236.58 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $233.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $223.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. Broadridge Financial Solutions has a 52 week low of $188.30 and a 52 week high of $244.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.02 and a beta of 1.08.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The business services provider reported $1.56 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 period in the prior year, the business posted $0.92 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Broadridge Financial Solutions will post 8.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Broadridge Financial Solutions news, VP Thomas P. Carey sold 15,710 shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.32, for a total transaction of $3,618,327.20. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 12,146 shares in the company, valued at $2,797,466.72. The trade was a 56.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Laura Matlin sold 514 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.60, for a total transaction of $124,182.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 6,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,595,043.20. This trade represents a 7.22 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 21,666 shares of company stock valued at $5,050,766. 1.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Broadridge Financial Solutions

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,294,766 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,231,904,000 after purchasing an additional 74,674 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,181,715 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,118,644,000 after purchasing an additional 51,439 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 50.0% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 3,560,316 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $804,952,000 after buying an additional 1,186,555 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,037,015 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $684,971,000 after buying an additional 37,141 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,649,761 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $378,175,000 after acquiring an additional 43,533 shares during the last quarter. 90.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.