Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH) Rating Increased to Hold at Wells Fargo & Company

Key Points

• Wells Fargo upgraded Bread Financial to a “Hold” rating, while analyst sentiment overall remains a “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $112.29.
• Bread Financial reported quarterly EPS of $3.55, beating the $2.74 consensus estimate, while revenue of $993 million increased 6.9% year over year.
• BFH opened at $106.28, near its 52-week high of $114.53; institutional investors own 99.52% of the stock, while a company director recently reduced her holdings by 38.6% through a share sale.

Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Wells Fargo & Company to a "hold" rating in a report issued on Friday, Zacks reports.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Bread Financial from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, August 31st. Evercore restated an "outperform" rating and set a $116.00 price objective on shares of Bread Financial in a report on Monday, July 6th. Loop Capital began coverage on shares of Bread Financial in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $104.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Bread Financial in a report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Bread Financial in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Bread Financial has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $112.29.

Bread Financial Stock Performance

BFH stock opened at $106.28 on Friday. Bread Financial has a 1-year low of $53.83 and a 1-year high of $114.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The firm has a market cap of $4.08 billion, a PE ratio of 8.29, a P/E/G ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.10. The business's 50-day moving average price is $105.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $92.56.

Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $3.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.74 by $0.81. Bread Financial had a return on equity of 18.42% and a net margin of 11.95%.The company had revenue of $993.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $959.32 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.15 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Bread Financial will post 12.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Bread Financial

In other news, Director Praniti Lakhwara sold 2,802 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.12, for a total transaction of $297,348.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 4,458 shares in the company, valued at $473,082.96. This represents a 38.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BFH. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in Bread Financial by 4.5% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 29,589 shares of the company's stock worth $1,482,000 after buying an additional 1,286 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Bread Financial by 46.5% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 345,902 shares of the company's stock worth $17,323,000 after purchasing an additional 109,864 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Bread Financial by 104.8% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 736,604 shares of the company's stock worth $36,889,000 after purchasing an additional 376,920 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its holdings in shares of Bread Financial by 3.0% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 157,833 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,904,000 after purchasing an additional 4,624 shares during the period. Finally, Strs Ohio bought a new stake in shares of Bread Financial in the 1st quarter valued at about $65,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.52% of the company's stock.

Bread Financial Company Profile

Bread Financial Corporation NYSE: BFH is a financial services company that provides payment, lending and savings solutions for consumers and businesses. Its offerings include private-label and co-branded credit cards, installment loans, buy now, pay later financing and direct-to-consumer savings products.

The company works with retailers and brands to design and manage customized credit programs, including account servicing, underwriting, transaction processing and customer engagement services.

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