Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR) Short Interest Update

Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,650,000 shares, a growth of 20.4% from the August 31st total of 1,370,000 shares. Approximately 1.4% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 555,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.0 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, President Christopher John Perry sold 162 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.00, for a total value of $34,020.00. Following the sale, the president now directly owns 67,267 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,126,070. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Chairman Richard J. Daly sold 21,938 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.66, for a total value of $4,555,645.08. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 105,094 shares in the company, valued at $21,823,820.04. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, President Christopher John Perry sold 162 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.00, for a total value of $34,020.00. Following the sale, the president now owns 67,267 shares in the company, valued at $14,126,070. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 134,386 shares of company stock worth $28,112,824 over the last three months. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Broadridge Financial Solutions

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. LifeSteps Financial Inc. bought a new position in Broadridge Financial Solutions in the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. EdgeRock Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions during the second quarter worth $32,000. Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new position in Broadridge Financial Solutions during the second quarter valued at $32,000. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. bought a new stake in Broadridge Financial Solutions in the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Family Firm Inc. purchased a new stake in Broadridge Financial Solutions in the 2nd quarter worth $37,000. 90.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Stock Performance

NYSE BR traded up $3.00 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $215.03. 713,554 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 530,862. Broadridge Financial Solutions has a 52 week low of $166.73 and a 52 week high of $223.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.18 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $210.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $203.61.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The business services provider reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.49 by $0.01. Broadridge Financial Solutions had a net margin of 10.73% and a return on equity of 42.77%. The firm had revenue of $1.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.96 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.21 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Broadridge Financial Solutions will post 8.51 EPS for the current year.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, September 12th will be issued a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 12th. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.64%. This is an increase from Broadridge Financial Solutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. Broadridge Financial Solutions’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.07%.

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.