Merit Financial Group LLC Grows Holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR)

Merit Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR) by 33.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 7,863 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,959 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions were worth $1,778,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in BR. Bogart Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 384.0% during the third quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 121 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its stake in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 2,028.6% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 149 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its stake in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 246.7% in the fourth quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 156 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. purchased a new position in Broadridge Financial Solutions in the third quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Broadridge Financial Solutions in the third quarter valued at about $39,000. 90.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on BR. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $246.00 target price on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. StockNews.com cut shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 9th. DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $200.00 to $207.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Wolfe Research restated a “peer perform” rating on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $226.71.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Thomas P. Carey sold 15,710 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 12,146 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,797,466.72. This represents a 56.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Douglas Richard Deschutter sold 24,185 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.21, for a total transaction of $5,325,778.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 27,137 shares in the company, valued at $5,975,838.77. The trade was a 47.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 54,532 shares of company stock valued at $12,264,846. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of BR stock opened at $230.35 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.85 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.63. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $229.51 and its 200 day moving average is $218.25. Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. has a 12 month low of $188.30 and a 12 month high of $237.96.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The business services provider reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $1.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.48 billion. Broadridge Financial Solutions had a net margin of 10.57% and a return on equity of 41.79%. Broadridge Financial Solutions’s revenue was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.09 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. will post 8.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th were issued a dividend of $0.88 per share. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.53%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. Broadridge Financial Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.90%.

Broadridge Financial Solutions 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.