Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) Sets New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $228.43 and last traded at $228.34, with a volume of 82702 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $226.21.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $200.00 to $207.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $224.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $246.00 price objective on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Broadridge Financial Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, November 9th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $217.83.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $26.64 billion, a PE ratio of 39.62 and a beta of 1.05. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $215.21 and a 200 day simple moving average of $207.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.39.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The business services provider reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.48 billion. Broadridge Financial Solutions had a return on equity of 41.79% and a net margin of 10.57%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.09 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. will post 8.53 EPS for the current year.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.88 per share. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.54%. Broadridge Financial Solutions’s payout ratio is currently 60.90%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Broadridge Financial Solutions news, Chairman Richard J. Daly sold 21,938 shares of the firm’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 transaction of $4,555,645.08. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 105,094 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,823,820.04. This trade represents a 17.27 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Thomas P. Carey sold 10,757 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.82, for a total value of $2,439,902.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 12,689 shares in the company, valued at $2,878,118.98. The trade was a 45.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 140,996 shares of company stock valued at $30,073,732. 1.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG bought a new stake in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions during the third quarter valued at approximately $44,746,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 3,197.8% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 204,366 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $43,945,000 after buying an additional 198,169 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in the 3rd quarter valued at about $274,650,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 97.7% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 198,878 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $42,765,000 after acquiring an additional 98,275 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Earnest Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 25.9% during the first quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 364,195 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $74,609,000 after buying an additional 75,006 shares during the last quarter. 90.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.