Dun & Bradstreet (NYSE:DNB) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at StockNews.com

StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Dun & Bradstreet (NYSE:DNB) in a report released on Friday morning. The firm issued a hold rating on the business services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of Dun & Bradstreet from $12.80 to $11.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $9.15 price objective (down previously from $11.00) on shares of Dun & Bradstreet in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $14.00 target price on shares of Dun & Bradstreet in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $12.00 price target on shares of Dun & Bradstreet in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Dun & Bradstreet presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $11.86.

Dun & Bradstreet Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of DNB stock opened at $8.62 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.65. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $9.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $10.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.85 billion, a PE ratio of -143.63, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.14. Dun & Bradstreet has a 52-week low of $7.78 and a 52-week high of $12.95.

Dun & Bradstreet (NYSE:DNB) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The business services provider reported $0.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.32 by ($0.05). Dun & Bradstreet had a positive return on equity of 11.29% and a negative net margin of 1.20%. The business had revenue of $631.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $658.04 million. On average, analysts predict that Dun & Bradstreet will post 0.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Dun & Bradstreet Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 6th were given a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.32%. Dun & Bradstreet’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -333.33%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman William P. Foley II sold 2,500,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.99, for a total value of $22,475,000.00. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 8,109,644 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $72,905,699.56. This represents a 23.56 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 10.44% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Dun & Bradstreet

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in DNB. Vest Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Dun & Bradstreet during the first quarter valued at approximately $106,000. Confluence Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Dun & Bradstreet by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 3,986,188 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $35,637,000 after purchasing an additional 29,056 shares in the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP acquired a new stake in Dun & Bradstreet in the fourth quarter worth about $209,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in Dun & Bradstreet during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,349,000. Finally, Neo Ivy Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of Dun & Bradstreet during the fourth quarter valued at $96,000. 86.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Dun & Bradstreet Company Profile

Dun & Bradstreet Holdings, Inc engages in providing business decisioning data and analytics solutions. The firm is involved in providing information with its solutions to support its clients with critical business operations. It offers end-to-end solutions to clients in the small business, finance, sales & marketing, third party risk & compliance, and public sectors.