Brunswick (NYSE:BC) Downgraded to "Hold" Rating by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Brunswick (NYSE:BC) from a "buy" to a "hold" in a research note, contributing to the stock's consensus rating of "Hold."
• Brunswick reported quarterly EPS of $0.58 (in line with estimates) and revenue of $1.33 billion (beating $1.21 billion), with revenue up 15.5% year-over-year; the stock trades near $79.53 with an average analyst price target of $84.57.
• Significant insider selling occurred in February — the CEO sold 38,266 shares and a VP sold 4,981 shares — while institutional ownership remains very high at about 99.34% and several funds recently increased stakes.

Brunswick (NYSE:BC - Get Free Report) was downgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

BC has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Benchmark lifted their target price on shares of Brunswick from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Roth Mkm reissued a "buy" rating and set a $94.00 target price (up from $79.00) on shares of Brunswick in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Wolfe Research set a $90.00 target price on shares of Brunswick in a research note on Monday, January 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Brunswick from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $85.00 target price on shares of Brunswick in a research note on Friday, January 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $84.57.

Brunswick Trading Down 0.6%

NYSE BC opened at $79.53 on Friday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $76.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $74.91. The stock has a market cap of $5.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -37.51 and a beta of 1.38. Brunswick has a twelve month low of $44.40 and a twelve month high of $90.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 1.44.

Brunswick (NYSE:BC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.58. The company had revenue of $1.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.21 billion. Brunswick had a negative net margin of 2.56% and a positive return on equity of 12.22%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 15.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.24 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Brunswick will post 4.26 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Brunswick

In related news, VP Christopher F. Dekker sold 4,981 shares of Brunswick stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.38, for a total value of $435,239.78. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 39,740 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,472,481.20. The trade was a 11.14% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO David M. Foulkes sold 38,266 shares of Brunswick stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.56, for a total transaction of $3,312,304.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 271,169 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $23,472,388.64. The trade was a 12.37% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.99% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Brunswick

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BC. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Brunswick by 56.4% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,302,918 shares of the company's stock valued at $145,637,000 after purchasing an additional 830,451 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in Brunswick by 70.1% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,700,164 shares of the company's stock worth $107,518,000 after acquiring an additional 700,447 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Brunswick during the 4th quarter worth $46,665,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Brunswick by 812.7% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 705,719 shares of the company's stock worth $38,934,000 after acquiring an additional 628,393 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Brunswick by 381.4% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 765,651 shares of the company's stock worth $56,842,000 after acquiring an additional 606,618 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.34% of the company's stock.

Brunswick Company Profile

Founded in 1845 by John Moses Brunswick, Brunswick Corporation is a global leader in recreation products. Headquartered in Mettawa, Illinois, the company has evolved from its origins as a billiard table manufacturer into a diversified supplier of leisure equipment, serving both consumer and commercial markets around the world.

Brunswick operates through two primary segments: Marine and Bowling & Billiards. In its Marine segment, the company designs, manufactures and distributes recreational boats, outboard engines and aftermarket parts under recognized brands such as Sea Ray, Bayliner and Mercury Marine.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.