AllianceBernstein (NYSE:AB) Sets New 52-Week High After Strong Earnings

AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. (NYSE:AB) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The company traded as high as $35.45 and last traded at $34.94, with a volume of 27977 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $34.42.

The asset manager reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $807.42 million. AllianceBernstein had a return on equity of 15.27% and a net margin of 6.47%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.61 EPS.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on AB. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of AllianceBernstein from $39.00 to $37.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 8th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of AllianceBernstein from $54.00 to $51.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $40.69.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AllianceBernstein

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AB. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in AllianceBernstein in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new stake in shares of AllianceBernstein in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in AllianceBernstein during the 1st quarter worth $28,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. bought a new position in AllianceBernstein during the second quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Register Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in AllianceBernstein in the first quarter valued at about $42,000. Institutional investors own 19.25% of the company’s stock.

AllianceBernstein Stock Up 0.3 %

The company has a market capitalization of $3.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.29, a P/E/G ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.24. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $33.66 and a 200-day simple moving average of $33.51.

About AllianceBernstein

AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. is a publicly owned investment manager. The firm is a related adviser The firm manages separate client focused portfolios for its clients. The firm primarily invests in common and preferred stocks, warrants and convertible securities, government and corporate fxed-income securities, commodities, currencies, real estate-related assets and infation-protected securities.