AQR Capital Management LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BFH)

AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BFH - Free Report) by 11.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 196,859 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 20,133 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned about 0.40% of Bread Financial worth $12,020,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. World Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Bread Financial in the third quarter valued at about $810,000. Diversified Trust Co purchased a new stake in Bread Financial in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $209,000. Range Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Bread Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $406,000. Hennessy Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Bread Financial during the fourth quarter worth $3,480,000. Finally, Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Bread Financial in the fourth quarter worth $213,000. 99.52% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Bread Financial Stock Performance

NYSE BFH opened at $48.94 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 1.15. Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $38.21 and a 1-year high of $66.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.33. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $48.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $55.65.

Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.76. Bread Financial had a net margin of 5.75% and a return on equity of 12.41%. The firm had revenue of $970.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $956.17 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.73 earnings per share. Bread Financial's revenue was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 6.45 EPS for the current year.

Bread Financial announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, March 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $150.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Bread Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be given a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. Bread Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays lifted their price objective on Bread Financial from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on shares of Bread Financial from $68.00 to $58.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Compass Point upped their price objective on shares of Bread Financial from $75.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Bread Financial in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Bread Financial from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $60.00.

Bread Financial Profile

Bread Financial Holdings, Inc provides tech-forward payment and lending solutions to customers and consumer-based industries in North America. It offers credit card and other loans financing services, including risk management solutions, account origination, and funding services for private label and co-brand credit card programs, as well as through Bread partnerships; and Comenity-branded general purpose cash-back credit.

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