Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) Hits New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $244.58 and last traded at $244.03, with a volume of 38465 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $241.22.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wolfe Research reiterated a “peer perform” rating on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Broadridge Financial Solutions from $207.00 to $222.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $215.00 price objective on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Broadridge Financial Solutions from $231.00 to $249.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Broadridge Financial Solutions presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $239.17.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Trading Up 0.2 %

The company has a market capitalization of $28.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.93 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 1.35. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $234.55 and a 200 day moving average of $224.86.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The business services provider reported $1.56 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 period in the prior year, the company earned $0.92 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. will post 8.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, March 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.88 per share. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.45%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. Broadridge Financial Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 55.09%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Robert N. Duelks sold 485 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $237.93, for a total transaction of $115,396.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,960 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,180,132.80. This trade represents a 8.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Brett Keller sold 5,442 shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $240.40, for a total transaction of $1,308,256.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 15,536 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,734,854.40. This represents a 25.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 6,441 shares of company stock worth $1,547,835. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions during the 3rd quarter valued at about $216,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 56.6% during the third quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 9,386 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,018,000 after acquiring an additional 3,391 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 11.0% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 20,967 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,536,000 after purchasing an additional 2,079 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 14.4% in the 3rd quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 52,361 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $11,259,000 after purchasing an additional 6,608 shares during the last quarter. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions by 7.3% in the 3rd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,293 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,568,000 after purchasing an additional 498 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.03% of the company’s stock.

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.