Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR) Shares Sold by Dearborn Partners LLC

Dearborn Partners LLC decreased its position in Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:BR) by 1.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 129,385 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 2,112 shares during the period. Dearborn Partners LLC owned about 0.11% of Broadridge Financial Solutions worth $29,253,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in BR. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 157,645 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $33,898,000 after purchasing an additional 6,552 shares during the period. CWA Asset Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in the third quarter valued at approximately $260,000. SpiderRock Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 86.4% during the third quarter. SpiderRock Advisors LLC now owns 6,309 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,357,000 after acquiring an additional 2,925 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. raised its position in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 130.0% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 667 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $143,000 after acquiring an additional 377 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atria Investments Inc lifted its holdings in Broadridge Financial Solutions by 9.7% in the third quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 29,638 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $6,373,000 after acquiring an additional 2,610 shares during the period. 90.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BR opened at $231.90 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.35. The company has a market cap of $27.14 billion, a PE ratio of 36.29 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $235.35 and a 200-day simple moving average of $225.50. Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. has a 12 month low of $188.30 and a 12 month high of $246.58.

Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE:BR) last released its earnings results 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 net margin of 11.36% and a return on equity of 44.40%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.92 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. will post 8.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.52%. Broadridge Financial Solutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 55.09%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Broadridge Financial Solutions news, 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 value of $1,308,256.80. Following the transaction, the director now owns 15,536 shares in the company, valued at $3,734,854.40. This trade represents a 25.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, President Christopher John Perry sold 22,357 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.23, for a total value of $5,259,037.11. Following the sale, the president now directly owns 52,524 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,355,220.52. This trade represents a 29.86 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 28,798 shares of company stock valued at $6,806,872. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $246.00 to $259.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions from $231.00 to $249.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded Broadridge Financial Solutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Wolfe Research reaffirmed a “peer perform” rating on shares of Broadridge Financial Solutions in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Broadridge Financial Solutions currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $239.17.

Broadridge Financial Solutions Profile

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.