Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) Hits New 52-Week High After Dividend Announcement

Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday after the company announced a dividend. The stock traded as high as $241.56 and last traded at $242.12, with a volume of 163687 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $238.65.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, March 13th will be given a dividend of $0.88 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.47%. Broadridge Financial Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 55.09%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Broadridge Financial Solutions from $207.00 to $222.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. Wolfe Research restated a “peer perform” rating on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. StockNews.com cut Broadridge Financial Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 9th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Broadridge Financial Solutions from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and set a $215.00 target price on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $239.17.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $28.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.58 and a beta of 1.08. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $231.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $220.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.39.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The business services provider reported $1.56 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.92 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. will post 8.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Broadridge Financial Solutions

In other news, VP Laura Matlin sold 514 shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the vice president now directly owns 6,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,595,043.20. This trade represents a 7.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Thomas P. Carey sold 10,757 shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.82, for a total transaction of $2,439,902.74. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 12,689 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,878,118.98. The trade was a 45.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 30,861 shares of company stock valued at $7,063,250. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bogart Wealth LLC increased 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 valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC increased its holdings in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 2,028.6% in the 3rd 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 period. Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its position in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 246.7% in the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 156 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions during the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions during the 3rd quarter worth $39,000. 90.03% of the stock is currently 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.