LPL Financial LLC Purchases 16,081 Shares of Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BFH)

LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:BFH - Free Report) by 69.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 39,197 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 16,081 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial LLC owned about 0.08% of Bread Financial worth $2,393,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of BFH. Picton Mahoney Asset Management lifted its holdings in shares of Bread Financial by 2,083.3% during the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 524 shares of the company's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Bread Financial by 207.7% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,394 shares of the company's stock worth $86,000 after purchasing an additional 941 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in shares of Bread Financial by 36.1% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,103 shares of the company's stock worth $128,000 after purchasing an additional 558 shares in the last quarter. Choreo LLC bought a new position in shares of Bread Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $201,000. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Bread Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $201,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.52% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on BFH. Compass Point lifted their price target on shares of Bread Financial from $75.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Barclays lifted their price objective on Bread Financial from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Bread Financial in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on Bread Financial from $68.00 to $58.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Bread Financial from $62.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $57.08.

Bread Financial Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE:BFH traded up $0.89 during trading on Friday, hitting $46.76. The stock had a trading volume of 797,879 shares, compared to its average volume of 878,463. The company has a market capitalization of $2.25 billion, a PE ratio of 8.43, a PEG ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm's fifty day moving average is $50.68 and its 200 day moving average is $55.71. Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $33.26 and a 12 month high of $66.71.

Bread Financial (NYSE:BFH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The company reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.07. Bread Financial had a return on equity of 12.41% and a net margin of 5.75%. Analysts anticipate that Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 6.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bread Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Bread Financial's dividend payout ratio is 15.14%.

Bread Financial declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, March 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $150.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

About Bread Financial

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.