Brunswick (NYSE:BC) Sets New 12-Month Low – Should You Sell?

Brunswick Co. (NYSE:BC)’s share price reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $53.69 and last traded at $53.81, with a volume of 136415 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $55.99.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Truist Financial lowered their price target on Brunswick from $90.00 to $85.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Brunswick from $92.00 to $85.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Benchmark reduced their target price on Brunswick from $100.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. B. Riley upgraded shares of Brunswick to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, DA Davidson dropped their target price on Brunswick from $80.00 to $60.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $81.62.

Brunswick Stock Down 4.6 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $62.35 and its 200-day moving average price is $71.83. The company has a market capitalization of $3.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.11 and a beta of 1.54.

Brunswick (NYSE:BC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $0.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.18 by $0.06. Brunswick had a net margin of 2.48% and a return on equity of 15.41%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.45 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Brunswick Co. will post 4.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Brunswick Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were given a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. This is a boost from Brunswick’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. Brunswick’s payout ratio is currently 90.53%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Brunswick news, SVP Randall S. Altman sold 3,417 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.21, for a total value of $215,988.57. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 26,683 shares in the company, valued at $1,686,632.43. This trade represents a 11.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Nancy E. Cooper sold 433 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.65, for a total value of $28,426.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 25,361 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,664,949.65. The trade was a 1.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Brunswick

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BC. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new position in shares of Brunswick during the fourth quarter worth $368,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in shares of Brunswick by 16.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 766,509 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,578,000 after buying an additional 109,728 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in shares of Brunswick by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,462,558 shares of the company’s stock valued at $94,599,000 after buying an additional 41,583 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Brunswick during the fourth quarter worth about $2,827,000. Finally, Channing Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Brunswick by 10.9% in the fourth quarter. Channing Capital Management LLC now owns 1,025,123 shares of the company’s stock worth $66,305,000 after acquiring an additional 100,412 shares during the period. 99.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Brunswick

Brunswick Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets recreation products in the United States, Europe, the Asia-Pacific, Canada, and internationally. It operates through four segments: Propulsion, Engine P&A, Navico Group, and Boat. The Propulsion segment provides outboard, sterndrive, inboard engines, propulsion-related controls, rigging, and propellers for boat builders through marine retail dealers under the Mercury, Mercury MerCruiser, Mariner, Mercury Racing, Mercury Diesel, Avator, and Fliteboard brands.